Best laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley…

Published on Saturday 12 January 2008 19:04

THE new £6m Robert Burns International Museum, promised as a centrepiece of Scotland's Year of the Homecoming in 2009, will not be ready on time.

The new museum, part of a multi-million-pound package of badly needed improvements at the Scottish bard's Ayrshire birthplace, was given approval in principle and the promise of funds in January last year.

It was to have opened its doors no later than January 25 next year, in time for the Homecoming Year, when thousands of Scots descendants around the world are being encouraged to visit the country of their ancestors to boost tourism.

But a huge row erupted last night after the Government admitted the museum will not now be completed until the end of 2009 at the earliest, and could miss the Homecoming Year altogether.

The heritage charity in charge of the project, the National Trust for Scotland (NTS), is likely to attract most of the flak. The organisation was given initial approval for the project a year ago but has not even submitted its detailed application for 5m of Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) cash.

As a result, the grant cannot be agreed until July this year at the earliest – the next time the lottery funding chiefs meet – and that leaves an impossibly short timescale for building the museum.

Cathy Jamieson, the local Labour MSP and former minister, said she wanted an inquiry into the delay. Patricia Ferguson, the former culture minister in the previous Labour-led Scottish Executive, also voiced concerns.

Burns enthusiasts and campaigners expressed anger that the museum will not now be ready for the opening ceremony, which coincides with the 250th anniversary of the birth of Burns in 1759.

John Haining, president of the World Federation of Burns Clubs, said: "This project was supposed to be ready for the Year of the Homecoming in 2009. In fact it was one of the centrepieces and we are very disappointed that that is now very unlikely."

John Skilling, secretary of the Burns Monument Trust, one of the organisations overseeing the project, confirmed they would miss the deadline by at least 10 months.

"The original intention was a big opening in Alloway on January 25, 2009. But I understand the new museum, the largest part of the project, will not be ready until November 2009; at least that's the target date at the moment. I am very disappointed that the project is not further forward and is taking much longer than hoped."

The delay will once again throw the official stewardship of Burns' lucrative tourism legacy to Scotland into question. An earlier plan to build a new visitor centre in Alloway collapsed in 2004.

The new centre was required to replace the old underfunded museum located next to Burns' birthplace cottage, which was letting in water and putting valuable original Burns manuscripts, since removed to Edinburgh for safekeeping, at risk of permanent damage.

Ferguson, the Labour MSP for Glasgow Maryhill and the then culture minister, asked the NTS to take over the running of the Burns-related buildings in 2005 and to come up with a new plan to create a world-class centre.

The plan, including the new 6m museum, was submitted to the HLF in 2006. The HLF national board gave the project stage one approval – effectively the green light – and a pledge of 5.8m towards the overall costs of the project last January.

In a fanfare of publicity, the Scottish Executive pledged a further 5.3m to help secure the financial future of the new attraction and thousands of Burns artefacts.

Designed by Leith architects Simpson & Brown, the new museum will have a central atrium featuring key events in Burns' lifetime with galleries leading off it like the spokes of a wheel.

A collection of 4,500 artefacts, including the original manuscripts of works such as Tam O' Shanter, the family Bible, furniture and duelling pistols will be housed alongside a research library and restaurant.

Jamieson, the MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, said: "It's a tragedy it won't be completed on time and I now intend to take this up with ministers to see how we push this ahead. It will be a real shame if 2009, when we are expecting all these people to come to Scotland, comes and goes without this museum being opened."

Minor refurbishments of Burns' cottage and the transformation of the old museum into an education centre are expected to be completed by 2009.

A spokesman for the SNP said: "It had originally been hoped that this new museum might be open in time to feature at the start of the Homecoming programme. This is looking increasingly unlikely.

"But what is certain is that the new museum will be a great legacy of the Homecoming, enhancing the timeless appeal of Burns to draw visitors to Scotland for many years to come."

The NTS refused to make anyone available to discuss the project. In a statement they said they were "on schedule" to make an application for funding by the end of this month.

The festivities

The Year of the Homecoming 2009 is an initiative started by former First Minister Jack McConnell's administration. It has been enthusiastically embraced by Alex Salmond's SNP as a way to entice thousands of Scots descendants living abroad back to the old country.

Organisers originally chose the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns' birthday next January as the year's focal point but several high-profile events are being arranged to make it last until St Andrew's Day on November 30.

The prize is hard cash. Supporters believe it will generate a 40m boost for the economy in the short term but have untold long-term benefits as hordes of new tourists visit and hopefully go home to praise Scotland's splendours.

Burns's birthday will mark the official launch of the year, which is forecast to cost 5m, and a string of events will be announced in the spring to coincide with Tartan Week in New York.

One confirmed highlight will be The Gathering, the biggest meeting of emigrant Scots and Scots clans since the pageant of 1822 masterminded by Sir Walter Scott, below. At least 80 clans will be represented in a parade up the Royal Mile and a 'Pageant of the Clans' on the esplanade of Edinburgh Castle.

Holyrood Park will host the world's biggest Highland Games, and there will be a trace your ancestry exhibition.

Prince Charles, the Duke of Rothesay and the Lord of the Isles, will be the patron of the event, and strenuous efforts are being made to ensure that he shows up in July.

The Open will be the platform for a series of golf-related events, and every Scottish schoolchild will be encouraged to invite friends abroad to Scotland. Edinburgh University research estimates a Scottish diaspora of around 50 million.

Leading emigrant Scots such as racing driver Dario Franchitti and actor John Barrowman are being recruited for an 'I'm Coming Home in 2009' marketing campaign later this year.