Cuts to heritage planning services ‘harmful’

A decade’s worth of cuts to local authority heritage and planning services ‘harms’ the historic environment, campaigners say.

The Historic Environment Forum (HEF) has published new proposals for a public consultation on improving the protection of sites and buildings in England.

The CLA, an organisation representing landowners, farmers and rural businesses, supports the proposals and said they would increase protection by encouraging greater use of expertise.

They also noted the suggested reforms would improve systems and processes, reduce local authority workloads, significantly improve listed building consent and hold local authorities to account.

CLA president Ross Murray said: ‘We strongly support the Forum’s view that more than a decade’s worth of cuts to local authority heritage and planning services have caused real problems and continue to harm heritage.

‘We look forward to seeing these proposals worked up further after the consultation and implemented to protect our heritage more effectively in future,’ he added.