I see that cynical culture war about history has kicked off again…

Culture wars secretary Oliver Dowden is very keen on delivering sermons about what he’s not going to put up with. He was doing this again yesterday in the church of the Sunday Telegraph.

Dowden has been not putting up with a lot lately, and mostly he’s been not putting up with people pulling down statues, even though hardly anybody does.

For his latest discourse, and I swear this must be one of those repeats people are always complaining about, Dowden was once again not putting up with allowing “Britain’s history to be cancelled”.

You hear this a lot at the moment and, frankly, it’s a puzzle. No one wishes to cancel history and anyway, you can’t. It’s there, it happened, it’s been and gone. 1066 and all that? Oh, no – we’ve cancelled that. It’s not there anymore, doesn’t exist.

When Dowden says he won’t put up with people cancelling history, what he means is that he won’t put up with people who think differently than himself or the government about how to present the many shades and shapes cast by our history. Unless you agree with him, your ideas are not wanted around here.

In his sermon, Dowden also said we should “stand up to the political fads and noisy movements of the moment”.

Well, yes. Especially if it’s that political fad and noisy movement of the moment about pretending that history is being torn up by leftie woke elves. If that’s your fad, Dowden’s your man.

Anyway, the culture wars secretary has gathered together a new Heritage Advisory Board to discuss all this, and don’t be surprised if any board member who dares to disagree suddenly falls through a chute in the floor.

In an aside, his latest sermon contained a passage about how voters in Red Wall seats will replace “people from metropolitan bubbles” on the boards of British museums. This was designed purely to generate headlines and/or a reaction, so we shall step over that trap while whistling something from the opera; or Van Morrison.

We won’t, however, let this next one pass without comment.

In bragging mode, Dowden sang his own praises in relation to the £2billion Cultural Recovery Fund.

Fair enough, up to a point. Yes, this money is a vital raft for the arts and heritage, even if that’s just what governments should do in such a crisis. It’s simply their job. Yet Dowden can’t resist saying that “this offers further proof that it is the Conservatives who are the party of culture”.

Oh, come off it. It’s rich for any single party to claim that title, especially the Tories. Years of austerity tore into the arts, and many other aspects of life.

Anyway, perhaps Dowden should have a word with education secretary Gavin Williamson, who at this very minute is proposing to cut the funding of arts subjects at universities from £36m to £19m (see past rants…)

An allegedly culture-loving culture wars secretary shouldn’t have to put up with such behaviour from a member of his own party.

Culture wars are this government’s favourite hobby. They cause distraction, they stop people talking about other things, and they dupe pissed-off bloggers into joining the argument instead of staying sensibly away.

These invented battles are barstool banter elevated to government policy. I realise that Sir Keir Starmer has a lot on his plate, but he really needs to work out how Labour can defuse these silly culture wars.

Big hint to Keir – don’t just join in, but oppose and ridicule, and expose this culture war for the cynical conjuring trick it surely is.

As for Oliver Dowden, we really shouldn’t have to put up with him.

 

Leave a Reply