Sale Stopper
The Poet Laureate, Andrew Motion, has called on the government to do more to prevent important works of literature being sold abroad.
His call comes after the Bodleian Library launched its appeal to raise nearly £4m in order to buy the Abinger Papers.
Motion called for the government to appoint a 'manuscripts tsar', whose task will be to find ways to keep precious works in the country. He also urged the government to increase its budget for purchasing manuscripts.
British universities and libraries do not currently have the funds to match the large sums offered by their American counterparts, and many British authors, including Sir Tom Stoppard and Sir David Hare, have sought foreign purchasers for their manuscripts.
12th Feb 2004