The Group To Stop Development At Culloden recommend this petition to you for the reasons stated below.
By signing this petition you state that the current level of planning protection afforded to Scottish Battlefields, in particular, Culloden Battlefield, is woefully inadequate.
You are also demanding that the Scottish Government urgently pass a Bill to consider all of Scotland’s Battlefields as having DIFFERENTIATED STATUS from ordinary land on which standard material planning considerations are applied.

In 2011, Culloden Battlefield was formally included in Historic Environment Scotland’s (HES) Inventory of Scottish Battlefields. A comprehensive Inventory of Scotland’s most important Battlefields, supported through maps and documents, led to a clear identification of specific areas in Scotland determined to be of NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL IMPORTANCE.
Since then however, it has become increasingly evident that HES has consistently neglected to consider the impact, or detail considered objections to an ever-increasing number of planning applications, new and often repeated, inside their own designated inventory of Scottish Battlefields, including but not restricted to Culloden.

It is the assertion of the Group to Stop Development at Culloden (GSDC) that HES have singularly failed to interpret their own designations with respect to planning laws that equate Scottish Battlefields to any other ordinary piece of land in Scotland. That is their mandate and they have FAILED, most miserably.
Recently, this has become evident most notably at Culloden, where HES failed to object to developments at Viewhill, Culchunaig and Treetops.
Whilst a modern 16-house luxury house development now sits like an eyesore on Culloden Battlefield, organisations including the GSDC, took exception to HES's position and contributed to ensure the latter two applications did not materialise.
HES, an agency supposedly set up with the singular aim to preserve Scottish culture and heritage for future generations has failed to file substantiated objections to major developments on Scottish Battlefields and with this in mind GSDC insist the time has come that Scottish Ministers must duly rectify this in Scottish Law.

A new bill needs to be passed, giving Culloden and all Scottish Battlefields much greater planning protection. Parts of the land within Scottish Battlefields must be officially categorised as WAR GRAVES.
All Scottish Battlefields must be categorised as of National Importance.
Culloden Battlefield in particular must be provided special protection. No more development inside the HES-designated Inventory Boundary.

The Scottish Government must act swiftly to prevent developers from manipulating current planning laws which are most seriously, substandard with regard to sites of National Importance.
If you agree please sign.
Thank you, GSDC.

THIS IS THE GROUPS WEB SITE. www.stopcullodendevelopment.weebly.com