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

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce entrance charges for overseas visitors to visit national museums and art galleries.

Free entry to museums is government policy; indeed, retaining free entry to the permanent collections of our major national museums and galleries was a 2017 manifesto commitment. There are no plans to change this position.

We are proud that our world-leading museums are open to all; free entry is vital to participation, removing a financial barrier to experiencing collections which have been left to the nation in perpetuity. Since the introduction of the policy of free entry to the DCMS-sponsored museums, we have seen visitor numbers rise dramatically, particularly among young people, hard to reach groups, and overseas visitors.