The huge new £2.5bn UK tunnel that furious protesters want Labour to scrap
Stonehenge is likely to be put on a world heritage danger list over the plan, campaigners have warned.
Campaigners have demanded that Labour halt an “act of vandalism” which would see a £2.5billion tunnel built under Stonehenge.
UNESCO has threatened to put the World Heritage Site on the list of World Heritage in Danger, one step away from being stripped of its title, because of the proposed project.
Activists bidding to halt the A303 dual carriageway began their latest legal challenge at the Court of Appeal this week.
John Adams OBE, chair of the Stonehenge Alliance, said: “It's rather surprising that Labour hasn’t grasped the opportunity to save at least £2.5 billion given the lack of cash. It should be under no illusion that this road makes little economic sense.
“Scrapping the scheme now would restore our international credibility and safeguard the future of one of Britain’s most iconic heritage sites.”
Mr Adams, a director of Save Stonehenge World Heritage Site (SSWHS), added: “Yet, officials are busy promoting the road and the previous Conservative government’s agenda. As a result, Labour’s promise of change and its integrity and authority are being undermined. The question is, will it do the right thing?”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to commit to the scheme while on the campaign trail ahead of the general election.
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SSWHS previously brought a challenge over proposals to build the two-mile tunnel under the Salisbury landmark to overhaul eight miles of the A303 from Amesbury to Berwick Down in Wiltshire.
In a ruling earlier this year, Mr Justice Holgate dismissed the campaigners’ bid to overturn that decision, finding most parts of their case “unarguable”.
But SSWHS brought an appeal against this decision at the Court of Appeal in London.
In written submissions for the group, David Wolfe KC said the approval for the development in July 2023 by Huw Merriman, then Minister of State for Rail and HS2, breached a duty to act fairly.
He told the court that the then-minister wrongly gave no consideration to the “risk of Stonehenge being delisted” as a World Heritage Site.
A petition by the SSWHS to “save Stonehenge” has amassed nearly 230,000 signatures.
Mr Adams, chair of the Stonehenge Alliance said: “Since the scheme’s announcement in December 2014, costs have escalated from £1.1bn to at least £2.5bn.
“In reality these will likely exceed £3bn with construction inflation and probable cost overruns.
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“Furthermore, at a time when urgent action on climate change is required, building a scheme that will increase emissions by over 2.5bn tonnes of carbon doesn’t make sense. It will make things harder.
“Nearly a quarter of a million people want the new Labour Government to scrap the scheme straightaway. They want to see more benign solutions that respect the WHS’s unique landscape.
“Not only would scrapping the scheme rescue the UK’s international reputation for caring for its heritage, it would save the Treasury a small fortune.”
National Highways has previously said its plan for the tunnel will remove the sight and sound of traffic passing the site and cut journey times.
The Court of Appeal hearing before Sir Keith Lindblom, Lord Justice Lewis and Lord Justice Stuart-Smith is expected to conclude on Tuesday with a decision expected in writing at a later date.
By John Adams OBE, chair of the Stonehenge Alliance
The latest act of the Stonehenge saga was played out in the Court of Appeal this week.
Protestors gathered outside in the rain, whilst in a stuffy courtroom legal points were put to three judges.
Campaigners are seeking to overturn the dismissal of their challenge of the Conservative government’s decision to approve a £2.5bn dual carriageway through the World Heritage Site for a second time.
Five planning inspectors recommended that the road should not be built as it would cause permanent and irreversible harm to the site. Yet despite acknowledging this harm, the government approved the scheme anyway, an act that many see as vandalism.
For years the government ignored UNESCO’s many requests to reconsider the scheme.
Now UNESCO has finally lost patience. It is recommending that Stonehenge is placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. One step away from being stripped of its title.
Its international value can be seen in the petition handed into the government this week, with nearly a quarter of a million signatures from over 147 countries. But time is running out.
Unless Keir Stamer’s government makes an announcement at UNESCO’s meeting in India next week, Stonehenge could be placed on the danger list.
It's rather surprising that Labour hasn’t grasped the opportunity to save at least £2.5bn given the lack of cash. It should be under no illusion that this road makes little economic sense.
Once you strip out National Highways’ fantasy heritage benefits of £1bn (they still deny the World Heritage Site will be harmed), the scheme makes a loss, recouping less than 50p for every pound spent.
Keir Starmer has said we should wait for the outcome of the legal challenge.
Yet, as a lawyer, he should know that it’s about how the decision was made, not the merits of the scheme.
The road was extensively scrutinised by five planning inspectors and found wanting. Little has changed, so why delay?
Scrapping the scheme now would restore our international credibility and safeguard the future of one of Britain’s most iconic heritage sites.
Yet, officials are busy promoting the road and the previous Conservative government’s agenda.
As a result, Labour’s promise of change and its integrity and authority are being undermined. The question is, will it do the right thing?
