§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
What steps they are taking, in the light of the unwise financial management recently revealed within the Church Commissioners, to ensure that no church which, because of its historical or architectural interest ought to be preserved in the interest of the nation, is either demolished or converted to unsuitable alteration use by the Church Commissioners for financial reasons.
Viscount AstorDecisions on the future of redundant churches are made by the Church Commissioners in the light of all relevant factors. These include the advice of the Advisory Board for Redundant Churches, the opportunity for suitable other uses and the funds available to the Churches Conservation Trust for the preservation of important churches no longer required for regular worship. The Church Commissioners have agreed to ask my right honourable friend, the Secretary of State for the Environment, whether he wishes to hold a non-statutory public local inquiry into any proposals for demolition where reasoned objections have been lodged and have undertaken to accept a recommendation from him that a church should be vested in the Churches Conservation Trust. Funding for the trust is agreed by Parliament and the General Synod of the Church of England on a triennial basis. The Department of National Heritage maintains close liaison with the Church Commissioners and the trust and is satisfied that decisions on the vesting of churches in the trust continue to be made on a proper basis.