United Nations planning to add Stonehenge to 'World Heritage in Danger' list

A UN organisation is planning to add Stonehenge to a world heritage ‘danger list’.

The United National Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee has published a draft decision to add the Wiltshire monument to the list.

It aims to support conservation action and international assistance on threatened sites.

The proposal comes amid ongoing concerns and legal battles over plans to build a nearby road tunnel to ease pressure on the A303.

Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS) lost a High Court challenge in February over Transport Secretary Mark Harper’s backing of plans, which include a two-mile tunnel, to overhaul eight miles of the road.

The UN draft document notes: "The proposed A303 Scheme remains a threat to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of the property."

The World Heritage Committee (WHC) will vote on adding the site to the danger list at a meeting in New Delhi between July 21 and 31.

National Highways said the plan for the tunnel would remove the sight and sound of traffic passing the site and cut journey times.

However, the Stonehenge Alliance, which is campaigning against the tunnel, has welcomed the committee’s proposals.

Historian Tom Holland, the group’s president, said: "When in a hole, stop digging – and when the hole is one that has been dug by your political opponents, definitely stop digging.

"The new government will have the perfect opportunity to reverse a road scheme that is not only ludicrously expensive but risks huge damage to the country’s international reputation.

"We hope that whoever comes to power next week will seize it."

John Adams, a SSWHS director, said: "This is a damming verdict on National Highways’ plans.

"Whichever way you look at it, this scheme will be hugely damaging and should be scrapped.

"The money should be spent instead on improving public transport links to and around the South West.

"That would be the best way of reducing pressure on the A303, while still retaining the view of the Stones for passing travellers."

Two people were arrested on Wednesday 19 June after an orange substance was sprayed on the site. They've both been bailed pending further enquiries.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is working alongside UNESCO and the International Council on Monuments and Sites to protect Stonehenge.

The World Heritage Committee is set to review the draft and make a decision on the status of the monument at the end of July.