UK
UK literary festivals in financial crisis after Baillie Gifford drop all sponsorships
Pressure from Fossil Free Books forced the investment firm to severe sponsorship deals
June 9, 2024 08:49
Pressure from Fossil Free Books forced the investment firm to severe sponsorship deals
June 9, 2024 08:49Baillie Gifford is considering withdrawing support from all literary festivals following vocal protests from an anti-Israel/environmental pressure group.
At least five high profile festivals have severed ties with the asset management firm and a further four festivals have been dropped by the company amid controversy around celebrity dropouts and boycotts.
Cambridge, Stratford, Wigtown and Henley festivals announced on Friday that they had been told that Baillie Gifford was ending its partnership.
Without funding from Baillie Gifford literary festivals are likely to increase ticket prices and reduce their outreach.
Following a coordinated campaign over the asset management firm’s ties to the fossil fuel industry and tangential links to Israel, concerns at the company swelled about the pressure on and safety of staff.
The row first erupted over the Hay Festival in Wales, where comedian Nish Kumar and singer Charlotte Church were among some celebrities who pulled out over the sponsorship deal. Hay eventually caved into the protesters' demands and dropped Baillie Gifford.
Edinburgh International Book Festival also ended its 20-year partnership with the firm, while the Borders Book Festival announced that their relationship with Baillie Gifford had ended following the protests. Stratford Literary Festival stated on its website that its sponsorship deal with the firm will end after this year.
All had been targeted by Fossil Free Books (FFB), a campaign group that called on authors to withdraw from the festivals and threatened to “escalate” if the festivals did not give in to their demands.
The group highlighted Baillie Gifford’s investments in companies linked to Israel’s defence, technology and cybersecurity industries. The campaigners demanded that Baillie Gifford divest from companies with “links” to “Israeli occupation, apartheid and genocide”.
It took issue with firms including Amazon, the semiconductor group Nvidia, and Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, which have links to Israel. These companies are among the most widely held stocks in the world and are hard to avoid in a diversified share portfolio. Most UK pension schemes also include investments in these US tech companies.
FFB used Instagram to promote its campaign calling for divestment from the company's owner.
Last month, more than 700 writers and publishing industry professionals signed FFB’s open letter calling on Baillie Gifford to divest from fossil fuels and cease its links to Israel.
The investment firm said on Wednesday that it was having “ongoing conversations” with the remaining book festivals it supported about its future relationship with them, according to the Times.