Mission Statement: to assist the integration of foreign residents living in Spain
By Linda Hall •
Published: 16 Nov 2024 • 12:47
• 2 minutes read
Notre-Dame cathedral, restored following the fire that ravaged the Paris landmark in 2019, reopens to the public on December 8.
Before the fire, around 13 million tourists, pilgrims and worshippers visited the French gothic masterpiece each year. Once reopened following repairs that have cost €760 million, this is expected to rise to between 14 and 15 and million.
Calls to charge admission to enter the 861-year-old cathedral are ever-louder, and Culture minister Rachida Dati’s voice is amongst them.
Speaking to Le Figaro newspaper in October, Dati suggested that a €5 fee to enter Notre-Dame would generate €75 million a year.
“Across Europe, visitors pay to access the most remarkable religious sites. With €5 per visitor at Notre-Dame, we could save churches all over France. It would be a beautiful symbol,” she said.
Notre-Dame entrance fee would not apply to worshippers
Dati stressed that the charge would apply only to cultural visitors, not those attending mass or other religious services.
“If €5 can save our religious heritage, it’s worth it whether you’re a believer or not.”
Regardless of a future Notre-Dame entry fee, funds are badly needed as many of France’s 42,000 Catholic churches are in a bad state of repair and the Ministry of Culture is responsible for their maintenance and restoration.
Le Monde went further still. Paid tickets needed be introduced, the newspaper declared on November 15.
“Not just at Notre-Dame, but at the cathedrals of Chartres, Bourges, Reims, Strasbourg or Amiens.”
Meanwhile, the Diocese of Paris strongly disagrees and has routinely blocked all initiatives that would impose charge to access Notre-Dame.
Surplus from donations will fund cathedral s future preservation work
Less doubt surrounds funding the Notre-Dame repairs.
Following the fire, €846 million poured in from 340,000 donors in 150 countries , the Rebuilding Notre-Dame project revealed.
Both Bernard Arnault, chief executive of the LVMH luxury empire, and the L’Oreal family donated €200 million. There was a further €100 million each from the multinational holding company Kering and Total Energy’s chief executive, Patrick Pouyanne.
The surplus of around €140 million will be used for the preservation work that Notre-Dame will require in future, revealed Philippe Jost who is in charge of the restoration project.
Contrary to to earlier reports soon after the fire, all of the huge sums pledged by the billionaire donors had been “fully fulfilled” Jost told the Associated Press.
“They have honoured their pledges made on the night of the fire or in the hours that followed,” he said.
Sign up for personalised news
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our
Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Originally from the UK, Linda is based in Valenca province and is a reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering local news. Got a news story you want to share?
Then get in touch at [email protected].
Leave a comment Cancel reply
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Comment for robots
Known as the PEOPLE’S PAPER, Euro Weekly News is the leading English language newspaper in Spain. And it’s FREE!
Covering the Almeria, Axarquia, Costa Blanca North, Costa Blanca South, Costa del Sol , Costa Calida, Mallorca and beyond, EWN supports and inspires the individuals, neighbourhoods, and communities we serve, by delivering news with a social conscience. Whether it’s local news in Spain, UK news or international stories, we are proud to be the voice for the expat communities who now call Spain home.
With around half a million print readers a week and over 1.5 million web views per month, EWN has the biggest readership of any English language newspaper in Spain. The paper prints over 150 news stories a week with many hundreds more on the web – no one else even comes close.
Our publication has won numerous awards over the last 25 years including Best Free Newspaper of the Year (Premios AEEPP), Company of the Year (Costa del Sol Business Awards) and Collaboration with Foreigners honours (Mijas Town Hall). All of this comes at ZERO cost to our readers. All our print and online content always has been and always will be FREE OF CHARGE.
Sign up for personalised news
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Close
