National Galleries keeps Baillie Gifford on board as it warns Scottish culture is now in 'incredibly fragile state'

One of Scotland's biggest cultural organisations has revealed it is to keep Baillie Gifford on board as one of its main sponsors as it warned that the country's arts sector has slid into an "incredibly fragile state”.

The National Galleries of Scotland, which attracts more than 2.3 million visitors annually to its four sites in Edinburgh, said it had decided to continue its relationship with Baillie Gifford “after a lot of thought and consideration”.

The move has emerged despite several of the city's art galleries pulling the plug on their partnerships with the Edinburgh-based investment firm.

National Galleries of Scotland. Picture: Lisa Ferguson

Cultural events and institutions across Scotland have been targeted by activists over Baillie Gifford's links with the fossil fuel industry.

However First Minister John Swinney has criticised the “misplaced” targeting of the firm, while Scottish culture secretary Angus Robertson has warned that disinvestment campaigns were posing an “existential threat” to arts organisations at a time when many of them were already in “financial distress.”

The National Galleries, which currently gets around £26 million in annual Scottish funding from the Scottish Government, warned Holyrood’s culture committee earlier this year that it was struggling to balance its books, despite rolling out a voluntary redundancy scheme.

It is also still trying to raise funding to allow it to start work on a long-awaited new multi-million pound collection centre and visitor attraction on Edinburgh’s waterfront.

Work by the celebrated Scottish artist Eduardo Paolozzi was celebrated by the National Galleries of Scotland earlier this year. Picture: Neil Hanna

The National Galleries has insisted it is confident that its partnership with Baillie Gifford met its "strong ethical standards."

However it has also warned that its "world-class" programme "wouldn't be possible" with the support of corporate partners.

National Galleries director-general Annie Lyden, who has been in her role since January, has called for the government to deliver a promised £100m in new funding for culture "sooner rather than later," pointing out that its level of investment in culture in Scotland has slumped to one of the lowest anywhere in Europe.

Ms Lyden said: “After a lot of thought and consideration, the National Galleries of Scotland plans to continue our relationship with Baillie Gifford.

Work by the Seoul-born artist Do Ho Suh is currently being showcased by the National Galleries of Scotland at its Modern One gallery in Edinburgh. Picture: Neil Hanna

"We understand that this is a complex issue, and there are many differing views, but we are confident that the funding we receive from Baillie Gifford meets our strong ethical standards.

“As a cultural organisation, the National Galleries of Scotland offers a space for artists to share experiences and perspectives with others, encouraging discussion and understanding of the world we live in.

"This is one of the main ways we can positively impact society, but it needs to be funded.

“We deliver a world-class programme of exhibitions, events, engagement and outreach which just wouldn’t be possible without support from partners like Baillie Gifford.”

The National Galleries of Scotland runs the National Gallery in Edinburgh city centre. Picture: Dapple Photography

Both the Edinburgh International Festival and the Fringe have confirmed they will continue working with Baillie Gifford weeks after the Edinburgh International Book announced it was parting company with the firm after 20 years after climate activists threatened the event with boycotts and disruption over its biggest financial backer.

Baillie Gifford, which had earlier had its sponsorship with the Hay Festival in Wales suspended, has accused activists of waging an “anonymous campaign of coercion and misinformation” which put “intolerable pressure” on authors and festival organisers.

The company, which has since pulled the plug on its partnerships with literary events throughout the UK, said it held the activists “squarely responsible for the inhibiting effect their action will have on funding for the arts in this country.”

The Collective, Stills and Fruitmarket galleries have all ended their partnerships with Baillie Gifford since the Art Workers for Palestine Scotland campaign group demanded that Scottish cultural organisations “sever their ties” with the firm unless it divested from companies said to be involved with Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. However Baillie Gifford has described criticisms of its links to Israel as “seriously misleading” and has suggested only two per cent of its investments is in companies with some connection to the fossil fuels industry.

The Scottish Government last pledged to “more than double” arts spending in Scotland, which was £194.5 in 2022-23, with an additional £100m promised by 2028-29.

However there is growing anxiety in the cultural sector that the government is not acting swiftly enough to deal with an industry-wide funding crisis.

Photographer Robert Wilson's image of Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa is now in the permanent collection of the National Galleries of Scotland. Picture: Neil Hanna

Ms Lyden added: “There is plenty of evidence that the cultural sector generally and museums and galleries sector in particular is in an incredibly fragile state.

"The survival of the sector is essential for the wellbeing of the nation.

"Recent research by the National Galleries of Scotland shows that around 86 per cent of our visitors felt that their visit had a positive impact on their wellbeing.

"However, the sector still remains among one of the lowest funded in Europe, with less than one per cent of the overall budget spent on arts and culture. How can we thrive or indeed survive in these conditions?

"So, while we welcome the additional £100 million per annum for the culture budget by the end of five years, we need clarity sooner rather than later as to how it will be allocated.”

The Edinburgh International Festival confirmed last week that it was committed to working with Baillie Gifford.

Chief executive Francesca Hegyi said: “Our board has spent a long time examining this question, not just about Baillie Gifford, but the whole principle of ethical funding.

“Our board has examined it from multiple angles and was unanimous in deciding that we should stay with Baillie Gifford.

“They've been with us for decades and they've been a fantastic partner. Without them, we wouldn't be able to deliver the work that we do in communities. They really underpin what we do to take the festival out to the people of Edinburgh.”