§ 1. Mr. Chapmanasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his estimate of the numbers of buildings which have been listed as of architectural or historic interest.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Environment (Mr. Richard Tracey)A total of 360,590 buildings in England had been listed by the end of September this year.
§ Mr. ChapmanI congratulate my hon. Friend on his appointment and wish him well. Will he confirm that the objective of listing buildings is to conserve architectural excellence rather than just to preserve architectural mediocrity? Does he agree that it would be wrong to increase the numbers just for the sake of it, for example, to the round figure of 500,000?
§ Mr. TraceyI am grateful for my hon. Friend's congratulation. I recognise his experience in these matters. My right hon. Friend is satisfied with the strict criteria adopted by the supervision of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission and considers it a matter of some pride that, when completed, the resurvey of England will represent the most comprehensive record of buildings of architectural and historic importance in Europe.
§ Mr. DalyellDoes the commission have enough skilled staff to do the listing?
§ Mr. TraceyYes, Sir.
§ Mr. HeddleDoes my hon. Friend recall the case of Monkspath Hall in the west midlands, a listed building 282 which quite by chance was demolished one Sunday afternoon about four years ago by an Irish bulldozer driver to make way for an industrial estate? Does my hon. Friend agree that the penalties for accidentally demolishing listed buildings should be increased substantially to take account of replacement costs, and will he have discussions with the Home Secretary about the matter?
§ Mr. TraceyI accept what my hon. Friend says. He will be interested to know that 217 listed buildings were demolished in the year ending 31 March 1985, of which 214 were in grade 2. No grade 1 listed building was lost.