Furious campaigners and councillors battling to save the Museum of Science and Industry have said they will continue to fight against its proposed closure, despite reassurances from Culture Minister Ed Vaizey.
Budget cuts are still threatening the museum, and it is still unclear what the result of the cuts will be.
Councillor Rosa Battle, Executive Member for Culture and Leisure at Manchester City Council, has said the council will continue to do all they can to keep up the pressure to ensure that funding for the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI), the National Media Museum, and The National Railway Museum remains at the current levels.
The comments come even though Culture Minister Ed Vaizey said MOSI would not close.
Speaking to the BBC, he said: “They [the Science Museum Group] asserted if there was a certain level of cuts they would have to look at closing one.
“They are not going to receive those level of cuts so there is no reason why any of these museums should close.
“Let’s not beat about the bush – they won’t close.”
But Councillor Battle is still not completely satisfied, and has said they still don’t know the actual level of cuts due to take place.
She said: “Manchester Museum of Science and Industry is not just a museum, it is a vital part of Manchester’s past, our present, and also our future, and is an internationally important resource.
“The Government could hardly have failed to notice the strength of feeling on this issue, not just in relation to MOSI, but also the other two world class museums threatened with closure in Bradford and York.
“Whilst the Culture Secretary’s comments are encouraging, it’s clear there will still be budget cuts, and until we know the depth of these cuts and how the Science Museum Group intends to respond to them, we will continue to do all we can to keep up the pressure to ensure that funding for MOSI, the National Media Museum, and The National Railway Museum remains at the current levels.
“To that end I would encourage everyone to sign the petition supporting MOSI and to get themselves along to visit it.
“I’ve been along there again myself today, and the breadth and quality of exhibits there never fails to impress me.”
The high-profile campaign to save MOSI was started on Facebook by Manchester mum Sophie Lee-Manford from Stretford.
Her Facebook page – ‘Save Museum of Science and Industry Manchester from closure’ – has since gained over 2,000 likes with people posting on the page why the museum should be saved.
One Facebook user, Paul Cocker, said: “There should be no question of the museum closing, this is not a place of dead and dusty relics, but a collection of the some of the finest scientific and engineering thinking from this country, and it’s FREE.”
Another angry campaigner said: “I cannot believe how this government thinks closing or reducing the funding of our museums is beneficial to the education and wider extracurricular benefits of everyone. It is an absolute outrage.”
A petition has also been started and has gained over 30,000 signatures.
You can sign the petition here http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/science-museum-group-save-the-museum-of-science-and-industry-mosi
Picture courtesy of no22a, with thanks.
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