A bill amending the Museums Act has now been passed by the Althingi. It provides for a uniform term of office for directors of major museums and for the Museums Council, which oversees museum work in the country, to convene an annual consultation meeting with the minister and representatives of major museums and professional associations involved in the work of the museums.
One of the main changes to the Museum Act, the Act on the National Museum of Iceland and the Act on the Natural History Museum of Iceland, is the uniform term of office for directors of major museums, with directors now being able to be appointed to office twice and therefore hold office for a maximum of 10 years. The Fine Arts Act, No. 64/2012, now states that the appointment of the director of the National Gallery of Iceland may only be renewed once, for the next five years. This change is also in line with the term of office for, for example, the director of the Icelandic Film Centre and the director of the National Theatre.
The Minister of Culture and Business's bill was submitted in consultation with museum staff after a meeting in the fall of 2022. In addition to the ministry's staff, the meetings were attended by representatives of the Association of Archaeologists, the Association of Icelandic Museums and Museum Owners (FÍSOS), the Icelandic Association of Ethnologists, the Icelandic Section of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), and the Icelandic Historians' Association.