Fears over future of Newport's historic ship

9:25am Thursday 14th February 2013 in News

Fears over future of Newport's historic ship Fears over future of Newport's historic ship

THE future of the Newport Ship is uncertain after a city council report suggested that it could be disposed of or handed to another organisation.

The proposals for the ship emerged in a report to the scrutiny committee for community, planning and development on possible future savings to be discussed at cabinet next Monday.

It outlines cuts in the budget of the ship of £290,000 between 2013/14 and 2015/16. It says conservation will be complete by October 2014, and in 2015/16 “the conserved timber will need to be disposed of or stored by another museum/ responsible body.

“There may be an opportunity for earlier savings if a lease arrangement can be arranged with a third-party organisation to take over and the project be relocated to a smaller space,” the report says, adding there are discussions with the Welsh Government or national organisations about the project.

Ship enthusiasts yesterday called on the authority to clarify what its statement means.

Tory councillor Charles Ferris, who is a patron of the Friends of the Newport Ship, said: “Are they talking about disposal of the project or the entire disposal of it? That puts us back to the good old days when they wanted to concrete over it.”

Cabinet member for leisure Debbie Wilcox told the Argus meetings are planned with national organisations to discuss the much-loved find.

She said one planned meeting had to be cancelled because of the snow.

“We haven’t given that a lot of time and thought because we’ve got other pressing issues,” she said.

“It’s a national project with national significance. We will try to come out with the best possible outcome for this.”

A Newport council spokeswoman said: “All options for the future storage and display of the Newport Ship are being considered.”

Upheaval for Newport Centre

NEWPORT central library and city museum could be moved into Newport Centre.

The scrutiny report also proposed the “relocation and transformation of central library and central museum”

into a “reconfigured sports hall” and central rooms that are under-utilised.

The proposal could make £700,000 of savings in 2014/15. Asked by the Argus whether the plan would affect events at the centre, a spokeswoman said the authority is exploring all opportunities to make best use of its buildings in the context of having to make significant savings.

Opposition councillor David Fouweather said: “There’s no way they cannot have worked out the consequences.

To tell me they haven’t worked anything out is beyond belief.”

ARGUS COMMENT: Ship must stay here

NEWPORT’S beloved medieval ship has spent the past decade being painstakingly conserved by a team of dedicated workers.

Now though it appears questions are being raised over what will happen to this fantastic archaeological find.

A city council report suggests the restored timbers could be “disposed of or handed to another museum or responsible body in 2015/16.”

Such a bald statement is bound to lead to many questions.

It may well be that it means there will be a Welsh Government-backed new home for the ship, or some national organisation or other taking over responsibility.

All well and good.

But the trouble is that although this little bit of information is now in the public domain, nobody is prepared to expand on it.

The result is real concern among the many supporters of the ship about its future.

It must be remembered that the discovery of the ship in the banks of the River Usk created a huge buzz around Newport and attracted interest from across the world. It was right that it was saved.

Such opportunities for cities to boast something unique do not come along very often.

What is needed now is a clear plan for its future so we can all be assured that the ship will be on display for future generations and that this treasure will stay in Newport.

Comments(29)

33daverave says...
9:37am Thu 14 Feb 13

So they want to put the library and museum in the sports hall.
Why don't this lot go back to their bowl of ice cream and carry on dribbling whilst holding a balloon.
Utter lunacy.

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Oddjob says...
9:48am Thu 14 Feb 13

Sorry to say it but the ship is better off out of Newport City Councils hands. They didn't want it in the first place; It was a finacial embarrasment and held up the building of the Riverfront project and as Charlie said they would have beed happier covering it over in concrete and forgeting about it.

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pinpong says...
10:04am Thu 14 Feb 13

Thank goodness we still have a good opposition to these lunatic labour councillors.

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Pawl says...
12:16pm Thu 14 Feb 13

What these writers and so many contributors to your columns is the fact that the money available to Newport Council has been cut and willgo on being cut. Nobody like this but it a fact that is being forced on all Local Authorities by the Cindem Government which pinpong points out is the Opposition in Newport. They would be doing the same exercise to look at all areas where costs are being incurred on non statutory activities.

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Pawl says...
12:17pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Apologies for typing errors!

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Severn40 says...
1:09pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Pawl. Not quite. The Westminster Government has given the Welsh Government a more generous settlement. Carwyn Jones and co have decided not to pass this on to local councils because they want to protect their vanity projects.

Anyway, the cutbacks in Westminster are the result of 13 years of Gordon Brown being rampant with the nation's credit card. What we are effectively seeing now in Newport is Labour councillors living with their party's legacy.

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Mr Bump. says...
1:10pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Burn the bloody thing.

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Woodgnome says...
1:16pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Currenyly, Newport has just a few high profile and positive claims to fame so what does the labour Council do - get rid of it?!!

They will be selling the Transporter bridge for scrap next.

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wizurd says...
1:22pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Severn40 - get your facts right! The reason we are in this state in the UK is due to unregulated banking practices and greed. Just before the crash the Conservatives released a document arguing for LESS banking regulations than we already had. If they had been in power then we would be even worse off than we already are.
The reason the national debt is so high is because of only 1 thing, bailing out the banks. In the grand scheme of things public sector debt means nothing. Austerity pushed by this pointless ConDem government isn’t working. The IMF has already told our government to relax on this but no they keep ploughing on thereby destroying this country just so they can stick to their political agenda, nothing to do with helping the vast majority in this country.
Back to the point though, like has been said, the council has NO money. Luxuries like historic ships all have to be looked at with regards to cost cutting. The actual number of things a council HAS to provide is in fact very very small. Be grateful you still have any services left.
The best thing to protect the ship is to get it handed over to the National Trust. They’ve got the funds and it’ll mean the ship will probably be in a better location and exhibited in a much better manner than the council can afford.
End of rant :-)

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pinpong says...
1:50pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Pawl wrote:
What these writers and so many contributors to your columns is the fact that the money available to Newport Council has been cut and willgo on being cut. Nobody like this but it a fact that is being forced on all Local Authorities by the Cindem Government which pinpong points out is the Opposition in Newport. They would be doing the same exercise to look at all areas where costs are being incurred on non statutory activities.
Remember its labour who run Wales and it is labour who have not passed on the money to councils. I am glad that we still have a con opposition in Newport. They keep this Labour lot in line.
Imagine what would happen if it was just Labour councillors

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Adrian Williams says...
1:57pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Get back to reading your Daily Mail Severn40, you Murdoch puppet. The reason all these cuts are coming in is because the Condems have done nothing to create any growth whatsoever in the economy, are stangling all the life out of the economy with their continued austerity measures and yet public borrowing is still going up (which the Murdoch red tops have conveniently overlooked). Triple recession awaits but it's never their fault

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whatintheworld says...
2:28pm Thu 14 Feb 13

pinpong wrote:
Pawl wrote: What these writers and so many contributors to your columns is the fact that the money available to Newport Council has been cut and willgo on being cut. Nobody like this but it a fact that is being forced on all Local Authorities by the Cindem Government which pinpong points out is the Opposition in Newport. They would be doing the same exercise to look at all areas where costs are being incurred on non statutory activities.
Remember its labour who run Wales and it is labour who have not passed on the money to councils. I am glad that we still have a con opposition in Newport. They keep this Labour lot in line. Imagine what would happen if it was just Labour councillors
Wales is disproportianately funded by central government, so whoever was in power would "have not passed on the money to councils" - there's simply not enough of it.

It's been mentioned here already, but our economic crises has been caused by the banks. Labour don't run the banks...

While Labour didn't regulate the banks as heavily as a party left of centre (at least used to be left of centre...) should have, the tories definitely wouldn't have been up for heavy regulation.

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UpsetResident says...
3:57pm Thu 14 Feb 13

This is sheer lunacy, are we seriously talking about a local council dumping the remains of a historic artefact that has worldwide relevance and importance??

What does this ridiculous excuse for a council have to do before the people put a stop to it? Can we even stop them? They've proven they don't listen or care what we want.

what a farce.

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Woodgnome says...
3:57pm Thu 14 Feb 13

It's a bit tedious when some indulge themselves with their personal views on macro economics and personal remarks about other contributors. The story is the Newport boat and the best place to secure its future in Newport. I personally would not want it to leave the City...

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ccc49 says...
6:55pm Thu 14 Feb 13

I wonder what would have happened if the ship had been discovered in Cardiff Bay. I Bet heaven and earth would have been moved to keep it there

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Mervyn James says...
7:02pm Thu 14 Feb 13

What makes the ship any different re funding ? They have spent thousands looking at bits of wood in a tank of water for 10 year, ridiculous. Mary Rose it aint.

If cadw or any other perservation area has money to burn (And it is usually ours), then Maindee Pool, Lawns club, and the other 7 ruins could be far better served. The council are preventing these being put to use,and sitting on millions in the bank too....

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D Taylor says...
8:37pm Thu 14 Feb 13

The Newport ship is older than the Mary Rose and historically very important since very few examples of clinker built ships have survived.

I have never known a time when so many services, many of which people value, have been proposed for closure. And this in one of the richest countries in the world. One that repeatedly indulges in military adventures abroad which cost untold £billions. It's utterly ridiculous.

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real_life says...
8:51pm Thu 14 Feb 13

Its a bit of old damp wood. Stick Bobby Bright and his not so bright labour group on it and send them down the river!

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Northville Nigel says...
10:49pm Thu 14 Feb 13

This is typical of Newport's uncaring attitude to its heritage - look at what has happened to the castle.

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Katie Re-Registered says...
8:04am Fri 15 Feb 13

If the only solution really is to 'dispose' of it, then why not sell it - ensuring that it goes to a good home where it will be taken care of and preserved - with the added bonus that Newport CC make money out of it?

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No point moaning says...
9:43am Fri 15 Feb 13

The trouble is that no-one seems to see the Ship as a potential asset. Newport could have a new museum for the town, including the ship and other vessels found over the years and currently in storage.

The Ship is of international importance and would draw people to the town, thus boosting the economy of Newport.

Why does everyone think that Newport City Council are going to have to pay the full cost of a place to keep her? Luckily for Newport and the Ship there are people who are prepared to think outside the box, donate their expertise and time and look to raise funds, spread the word, apply for funding and look to put Newport on the maritime map.

The Friends of the Newport Ship have campaigned tirelessly for this project from day one, with the support of the people of Newport who have been most supportive over the years. This will be just one more hurdle for them to negotiate - and they have already been looking at how they can take this new obstacle in their stride.

If you would like to know more about the Friends of the Newport Ship please go to http://newportship.o
rg/

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No point moaning says...
9:48am Fri 15 Feb 13

If you would like to know more about the Friends of the Newport Ship please go to
http://www.newportsh
ip.o
rg/”

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pinpong says...
11:36am Fri 15 Feb 13

real_life wrote:
Its a bit of old damp wood. Stick Bobby Bright and his not so bright labour group on it and send them down the river!
Great idea

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Mervyn James says...
2:39pm Fri 15 Feb 13

Northville Nigel wrote:
This is typical of Newport's uncaring attitude to its heritage - look at what has happened to the castle.
Newport's history was massacred by the Industrial revolutionists. The castle was ruined by a canal, a railway, drug addicts and recently others who used it as an open toilet, and two bridges, as well as a bypass of sorts...

History is wasted on Newportonians, who are the new barbarians. Even the chartists were attacked by the great and good of the councils, because they wanted a vote.. A Swedish visitor to Newport in the 18thc said "It is a dirty and run down town,where drunks habituate the pavements and gutters,where there is an public house in every street and side street, and everywhere there is dirt and decay...." Sound familiar ?

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Limestonecowboy says...
7:56pm Fri 15 Feb 13

...do you live in Newport?

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Lastpost says...
9:01am Sat 16 Feb 13

Many things about this pile of rotting wood is supposition. The Newport Ship website describes it using words such as 'likely', 'probably' and 'suggests'.

If it is so valuable, sell it and use the money to put our street lights back on.

If you must keep it, then stick it in Rodney Parade. It will complement the Dragons coaching staff; both are a pile of crock.

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Mervyn James says...
10:34am Sun 17 Feb 13

Limestonecowboy wrote:
...do you live in Newport?
Unfortunately, yes.

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Floppy backed says...
12:05am Mon 18 Feb 13

I dont think this is the responsibility of NBC - let CADW take it on or any other organisation.

Does it really create a buzz? Do people talk about it? Is it comparable to visiting attractions like the SS GB in Bristol or the Cutty? Do children really want to visit bits of old wood? do I? - the answer is no! Under mud all over the world there are medieval relics - for an attraction to stay open it has to be viable and should take money to cover the majority of it overheads. Much rather NBC concentrate on theatre, library & leisure.

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Newportbella says...
6:52am Tue 19 Feb 13

It is such a shame that Newport might end up losing such an important part of its heritage. I have been fortunate enough to attend an open day where I embarked on a very stimulating and eye opening tour of the ship. In that day history was brought to life and I felt a pride in my town knowing we have this treasure; a treasure for us and for future generations. It will be a devastating blow to Newport if the ship were to leave.
Why are so many other towns and cities tourist attractions and interesting places to go? Because their councils have the vision and the foresight to celebrate their heritage, invest in and display it with pride. Newport has as much to offer as many other historical cities - we have roman ruins, baths, the ship.... just so much! Think of the jobs a historical Newport on display could bring in. Think of the visitors that would come. As a city we are really missing a trick - I understand times are tough but let's not rob our future too. We need to fight for the ship!

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