All over the country there is a pandemic of listed buildings being razed to the ground under suspicious circumstances. This usually occurs just after the property is sold to a developer who can either not get planning permission due to the building being listed or they have to wait indefinitely for permission to be granted.

 

Unsurprisingly, usually in a very short period of time, these amazing national treasures are mysteriously burnt to the ground with no thorough investigation ever taking place. The developers then gleefully step in and build unimaginative, generic and profit-orientated housing estates or blocks of flats for vast profits.

It is then usually blamed on 'unidentified kids' and no further action is taken with no arrests made. On many occasions it obviously isn't kids and there is more to it. From the Old Skelmersdale Hall to the Wonky Pub in the Midlands, injustices and corruption resulting in the destruction of these beautiful buildings is happening up and down the UK.

I propose that the Government look into these arson attacks more seriously and bring to justice those that are responsible. The findings should be published to the general public and those that are responsible should be held to account.

The land that the listed buildings are built on should also be listed so that there can never be housing developments placed there. I expect a law like this would see a miraculous end to the destruction of our historic buildings so that they can be restored and maintained for future generations to enjoy and love.