Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to sign the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003; and if not, why not.

The Government fully recognises the contribution that the UK’s crafts, oral traditions and wider intangible cultural heritage make to the country’s cultural life. We encourage communities and cultural practitioners to celebrate these practices and to continue them for future generations. However, we have not seen any compelling business case for ratifying the UNESCO Convention, nor is it clear that the benefits of doing so would outweigh the costs. It is essential that we carefully prioritise resources towards those UNESCO conventions which will have the most impact on the safeguarding of heritage, such as the 1972 World Heritage Convention and 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. We therefore have no intention at present of ratifying the Intangible Heritage Convention, but will continue to keep the matter under review.