Meeting of the Parliament 27 September 2017
Today, we are debating the fine cultural achievements of Paisley and Dundee—and quite right, too. First, I want to reference another great city, Glasgow, the European city of culture in 1990, which, in many ways, led the way in showing Scotland how culture can transform a city and change its identity not only through national and international branding, but through self-perception and self-confidence.
It is worth reflecting that when Glasgow began its transformative journey in the 1980s, the proposal that culture could help to replace jobs lost through deindustrialisation was controversial. Indeed, in some quarters, it was considered to be eccentric and even dangerous. In 1990, when Glasgow was the European city of culture, there were fearsome debates about whether the year-long festival was a waste of time and money.
Glasgow pressed ahead because it had firm economic underpinnings for its bid. It enlisted the help of John Myerscough, an academic who led the way in measuring the economic impact of cultural spend. His 1988 report “The Economic Importance of the Arts in Glasgow” influenced generations of cultural economists and policymakers around the world. Myerscough, 30 years, one concert hall and thousands of festivals later, has been vindicated. In 2011, a follow-up report found that the market for culture in Glasgow had increased by 45 per cent between 1989 and 2008-09 and was 20 per cent higher than it had been at its peak in 1990. Those figures did not include clubbing, cinema and libraries.
Glasgow 1990 led directly to the two bids that we are debating today. Cities do not become a city of culture through a big-bang approach, although most festival goers enjoy the fireworks at some point. It is the investment in creativity over time that counts, and both Paisley and Dundee have excellent track records in that respect.
Paisley’s rich heritage in textiles, radical literature and music makes it more than a worthy contender for the title of the UK city of culture. Others have mentioned the deindustrialisation of Paisley, but the link between Paisley’s long-gone industry and culture is very tangible. Without the mill workers who were praised by Karl Marx, we would not have had the poet weavers such as Tannahill or the slab boys who worked in the carpet factories, who were the subject of the play by John Byrne that we all know and love; and—dare I say it—would we have had the great Prince without the Paisley pattern? Paisley has given so much to the world that it absolutely deserves to be a front-runner in the bidding process for UK city of culture.
Dundee has the new V&A museum of design, which complements long-established centres of creative excellence such as Dundee Contemporary Arts and the Dundee Rep Theatre. Mention has also been made of the art school, and Calum Colvin’s excellent Jacobite exhibition down in the foyer of the Parliament is a great example, close to home, of the work that it does. I encourage all members to have a look at it.
Independent analysis has suggested that if Dundee wins the title of European capital of culture, it will generate £128 million for the Dundee economy and create 1,600 new jobs. It is estimated that Paisley winning the title of UK city of culture would boost the economy by £172 million and create 4,700 new jobs, directly or indirectly. I am not quite sure why the figures for Paisley are so much more optimistic than those for the larger city of Dundee—perhaps George Adam got his hands on them first.