Minister ‘well informed’ about risk of Stonehenge losing Unesco listing, court told

Secretary of state for transport Mark Harper was “well informed” about the risk of Unesco delisting Stonehenge as a World Heritage Site when he approved plans to build a 3.3km road tunnel near the monument, according to legal arguments. The controversial plans are being opposed by campaigners, including celebrity historians and druids, at the High Court this week. The Department for Transport intends to widen part of the notoriously congested A303, putting it into a 3.3km-long tunnel where it crosses the World Heritage Site. The project is costed at around £2.5bn. A successful legal challenge brought by campaign group Stonehenge Alliance led to plans being quashed in 2021 but transport minister Mark Harper approved the scheme for the second time in July. Stonehenge Alliance’s second judicial review began at the High Court yesterday. The alliance’s lawyer, David Wolfe KC, is arguing it was procedurally unfair for the Department for Transport not to have a public re-examination of the plans after the first decision was quashed by the High Court. Wolfe is also arguing that a number of material and environmental considerations were ignored and the minister did not properly consider whether the scheme would lead to Stonehenge losing its Unesco World Heritage status. However, Historic England, the government’s principal adviser on the historical environment, said in written legal arguments that the minister had been fully briefed about the risk. Historic England attends Unesco’s World Heritage Committee. In 2021, the committee asked for a report from the UK delegation into the scheme so that it could consider whether to put Stonehenge on its World Heritage in Danger list, the submission, written by barrister Richard Harwood KC says. While Harper was redetermining his decision, Historic England “drew attention” to this request and the department asked for more information from various bodies. The minister “and the Department for Transport have, therefore, been well informed of the World Heritage Committee’s views” Harwood said. The submissions note that delistings from the Unesco list are “still rare.” The hearing is scheduled to last three days, with a judgment to be handed down at a later date. Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site Ltd and another v Secretary of State for Transport Administrative Court (Holgate J) Photo © Nik/Unsplash