UK art market set for post-Brexit flourish
John Redwood explains the negative impact the EU single market has had on the British art market.
The UK art market is one of the big three in the world, coming second after New York and a little ahead of Hong Kong and Shanghai. 98 per cent of the world's expensive paintings are sold through one of these three markets. When combined these markets account for 81 per cent of the total world art market turnover.
Only three per cent of the UK's art exports go to the rest of the EU. Imports from there account for 16 per cent of the total. The EU has imposed two extra costs on the London market not charged to clients of New York or China. One is a VAT on imports. The other is the living artists levy on a re-sale.
In typical EU fashion, they have invented rules and taxes that make an EU based market less attractive. As a result, London has lost market share to New York and China. It has not helped continental centres. The UK has 21 per cent of the global overall market, and 62 per cent of the European market.
Once we have left the EU the UK could cut the costs imposed. The VAT has cost us some business, but collects very little tax as a result.
It would be good to hear more from other media about the opportunities for us to do better out of the EU in sectors we are good at or have a natural advantage in. I have talked about fishing before, and agriculture is another obvious one. The art market is an excellent example of something we are good at, something which generates well paid jobs with a high level of training and interest. Out of the EU we can help it grow faster.
John Alan Redwood, Baron Redwood, is a British politician and academic who represented Wokingham in Berkshire as Conservative Member of Parliament from 1987 to 2024. Born on 15 June 1951, he served as Secretary of State for Wales under John Major and twice stood unsuccessfully for the Conservative Party leadership during the 1990s. Following his ministerial career, Redwood held positions in the Shadow Cabinets of William Hague and Michael Howard before spending his remaining parliamentary years as a backbencher. Prior to entering Parliament, he earned a doctorate at All Souls College, Oxford and served as Director of the Number 10 Policy Unit under Margaret Thatcher.
A veteran Eurosceptic described in 1993 as a pragmatic Thatcherite, Redwood has been particularly known for his work on economic policy and European matters. He co-chaired the Conservative Party's Policy Review Group on Economic Competitiveness until 2010 and serves as Chief Global Strategist of investment management company Charles Stanley & Co Ltd. Redwood was a prominent supporter of Brexit in the 2016 EU referendum and was a member of the pressure group Leave Means Leave. He writes commentary for Comment Central.
