Art Dealers 'Betrayed' By Govt

The Government has been accused of betraying Britain's £4.2 billion-a-year art market by abandoning a hard-won concession on a levy imposed by the European Union. Two reports, one from an influential House of Lords committee and the other by the London Assembly, criticise ministers for their policy about-turn. The Government has announced that the levy, called droit de suite, will be charged on all works by living artists that are resold for €1,000 (£680) or more in Britain. Yet for years the Government backed the British art market in its opposition to droit de suite and negotiated a deal with the EU under which the levy would apply only to works selling for €3,000 (£2,040) or more. For the full story - click the title Irish Art