Scottish Government hosts Scotland’s Built and Historic Environment Summit 2009
On Tuesday 3 November the Scottish government, in the person of Culture Minister Mike Russell MSP, through the national heritage agency Historic Scotland, hosted a morning of stimulating debate, discussion and forward planning for the sector in Bute Hall, in the University of Glasgow. Apart for contributing to Historic Scotland’s overarching modernising agenda, the event was an invaluable networking opportunity for the sector, with the government’s Chief Planner, Jim Mackinnon and Glasgow City’s Head of Planning Alistair MacDonald, among those reviewing planning for the built and historic environment.
IHBC director Seán O’Reilly said: “It was a remarkable event, in a suitably splendid High Victorian architectural setting. With so much of my time spent working on policy issues in England, where historic places are increasingly sidelined in major policy-making, sitting down to a small workshop on new design in historic settings with the Chief Planner in the chair is a little disorientating. But having your Minister act as roaming compere in an interactive discussion about transforming perceptions of historic places is almost surreal, especially when you get the sense he’d like to follow up a few risky jokes by bursting into song!”
“However such close contact with our political and professional leaders should be the norm, not the exception”, O’Reilly added.
“This event was a very welcome personalisation of a very human issue. The Minister is keen, like all of us, to build links across the diverse interests in our built and natural places. The Summit provided a crucial reminder that users want simplicity, and we have to work for that. If we can shape the system properly, we can make sure that it won’t be a compromise imposed on the sector, as is too often the case, but a progress shaped by it. And for any changes to succeed we have to accept first that our different perspectives on place and environment are no more than perspectives, and that most people just want better places, they don’t really care how we get them!
It was also a great opportunity to highlight the way government in Whitehall could make VAT work in favour of places, and not against them as it does now. Currently VAT encourages demolition and replacement rather than care and maintenance, which is environmentally catastrophic. However a simple change in the VAT system could revolutionise how industry uses the built environment, and this is now available to government through changes at European level. With his European remit, Mike Russell may be well placed to pursue this key agenda for the sector.”
There will be a follow-up summit with a wider audience in 2010.
The morning Summit hosted by Historic Scotland was followed up by a separate event hosted by Built Environment Forum Scotland (BEFS), the link body for built and historic environment NGOs, for which Historic Scotland provides core funding. As part of an ‘in practice’ forum, overseen by BEFS’ Chair Robin Burley, speakers from a wide range of specialist amenity interests explored challenges for the built and historic environment sector, and how BEFS, empowered by government, could progress its holistic and inclusive agenda.
See:
www.historic-scotland.gov.uk
www.celebratingscotlandsarchitecture.org
www.befs.org.uk
www.cutthevat.co.uk
Link to EU Commission website
