Historic Buildings (Hansard, 28 July 1971)

§ 25. Mr. Geoffrey Finsberg
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment if, in his review of the need for additional powers in regard to the preservation of buildings, he will consider streamlining the listing of buildings of historic and architectural interest.

§ Mr. Peter Walker
A new system for issuing statutory lists has already been adopted and further improvements are being pursued. I am pleased to say that this has been particularly helpful as far as emergency listing of threatened build- 564 ings is concerned and several hundred such buildings have been listed in the last quarter.

§ Mr. Finsberg
I thank my right hon. Friend for his helpful reply. Is he aware that there is disquiet at the procedure not working as well as it might in a few cases, and will he issue a circular to local authorities impressing on them the need to take action?

§ Mr. Walker
Yes, I will. Further improvements are being pursued, and the whole system of listing will by the end of this year be far better than ever before.

§ 36. Sir E. Bullus
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment what steps he is taking to safeguard historic buildings threatened by demolition in conservation areas.

§ Mr. Graham Page
Consent is already required before any building on the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest may be demolished. My right hon. Friend has undertaken to introduce legislation in due course enabling other buildings which are important to conservation areas to be safeguarded.

§ Sir E. Bullus
I thank my hon. Friend for that answer, but will he give an undertaking that he will keep a watchful eye on those buildings which are not already on the list and are of historic or other interest?

§ Mr. Page
This is the purpose of the legislation which my right hon. Friend undertook to bring into operation. I assure my hon. and gallant Friend that the listing of historic buildings is going on very well. In the last quarter, ending 30th June, 2,055 buildings were added to the list.

§ Mr. Selwyn Gummer
Will my hon. Friend agree that it is not enough to limit this control to conservation areas and that it might be a good idea to extend it to people's homes which might otherwise be destroyed? For example, the semidetached house next door to a person's home can at the moment be pulled down without any notice whatever. Ought we not to be concerned not only about preserving the past but about preserving the homes of the people of Britain?

§ Mr. Page
That is a rather different problem. On this Question I am dealing with buildings of historic or architectural value.

§ 26. Mr. Stokes
asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how the percentage increase in funds made available for the repair of buildings of outstanding historic and architectural interest this year compares with percentage increases over the past five years.

§ Mr. Graham Page
The £300,000 increase my right hon. Friend recently announced is more than the total of all the increases made in the last five years, and greater than the percentage increase for any other year.

§ Mr. Stokes
I am most grateful to my hon. Friend for that reply, which I am sure will give general satisfaction throughout the country.