§ Lord Raglanasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will consider measures to ensure the protection of the setting of national monuments and landmarks so that new developments do not spoil them.
The Minister of State, Department of the Environment (The Earl of Caithness)A measure to protect the settings of listed buildings of special architectural or historic interest already exists in Section 56(3) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1971. This requires local planning authorities, or the Secretary of State, to pay special regard to the desirability of preserving a listed building or the setting when considering proposals for development which would affect either.
Section 56(3) does not specifically deal with ancient monuments which are not also listed buildings. But DoE Circular 8/87 (paragraph 52) advises local planning authorities that, where applications are made for planning permission which would affect an ancient monument. the desirability of preserving the monument and its setting is a "material consideration" to be weighed when the application is being considered.