§ Mrs. Lena Jegerasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government what steps he is taking to prevent the disfigurement or demolition of No. 53 and Nos. 55 to 59 Gordon Square, in the Bloomsbury conservation area.
§ Mr. K. RobinsonAs part of the urgent review of buildings in Bloomsbury mentioned in the reply I gave to my hon. Friend on 17th March, No. 53 Gordon Square has now been included in the statutory list of buildings of special architectural or historic interest; and it cannot, therefore, now be demolished, or altered, in a way which would affect its character without the consent of the local planning authority or of my right hon. Friend.
Nos. 55–59 Gordon Square, however, form part of the site for which the University of London obtained planning permission for redevelopment in 1965. For the reasons given in my reply of 17th March, my right hon. Friend has concluded that he should not intervene to frustrate the university's proposals at this very late stage; and accordingly no buildings on this site have been added to the statutory list.—[Vol. 780, c. 26–27.]