London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 22, 2025

Liverpool’s loss raises questions on the future of our cherished sites

Liverpool’s loss raises questions on the future of our cherished sites

Analysis: removal of world heritage status is a humiliating moment for Britain and the UK government

The threat has loomed over Liverpool for almost a decade. With every new building, crane and construction site that appeared on its historic waterfront, there was a growing inevitability that the city would be stripped of its prized world heritage status.

Many believe the final nail in the coffin was the approval of Everton FC’s new £500m stadium at Bramley Moore-Dock. The 53,000-capacity venue will be built on derelict land that has been cut off from the city for 60 years, hemmed in by some of Britain’s most deprived streets.

Those who support the stadium idea sell it as an opportunity to pump hundreds of millions of pounds into a part of Liverpool still yet to see the benefits of a regeneration that brought the city back from its 1980s nadir. To its critics, including Unesco, the project will cause “incontrovertible harm” to a Grade II-listed Victorian dock.

It is this conundrum that lies at the heart of Unesco’s decision. The announcement, after years of to-and-fro between Liverpool and the UN body, was delivered over a shaky video livestream from Fuzhou in China. There was a grim resignation among council staff in the city’s majestic Cunard building, which was built nearly a century ago as a symbol of international prestige and sits in the heart of what was, until Wednesday, a world heritage site.


“Disappointed but not devastated,” said one town hall insider. The city’s leaders released furious statements, but the mood inside the Cunard was more sanguine: “No one wants to lose anything, but it’s not a Cinderella moment. The buildings aren’t going to fall into the Mersey and our history isn’t being edited or deleted. The people and the buildings and the city go on.”

It is, however, a humiliating moment for the UK as well as Liverpool. In the 49-year history of Unesco’s world heritage body, only an antelope sanctuary in Oman and the German city of Dresden have suffered the same dishonourable fate. It is the first time a city has been delisted for regenerating a historic landmark (Dresden was sanctioned for building a bridge on protected land, while Oman was delisted for cutting back on the habitat of the endangered Arabian oryx).

Liverpool’s world heritage certificate had not even been removed from the wall when the blame game began.

Some believe the brunt of culpability lies at the door of Liverpool city council. Under the leadership of the former mayor Joe Anderson, officials gave the green light to some of Europe’s biggest development projects, including Liverpool Waters, a £5bn Peel Holdings project to build 360,000 sq metres of office space, hotels and expensive apartments in the heart of the district.

The dream of transforming Liverpool’s waterfront into a UK version of Shanghai’s Pudong was, perhaps understandably, gobbled up by a council that has been devastated by budget cuts and a precarious reliance on tourism. It could also be argued that it is unreasonable to expect a city with Liverpool’s challenges not to build ambitiously on city centre land spanning the size of 190 football pitches.

It is, however, the UK government that has ultimate responsibility for the conservation and protection of its 32 world heritage sites. Cultural bodies have long warned that Britain has a far too hands-off approach towards its cultural gems. This may in part be because the responsibility falls between two Whitehall departments – Culture, Media and Sport, and Housing, Communities and Local Government.

But the Unesco decision should be seen as a sign that the international body is ready to act when it believes the “outstanding universal value” of Britain’s cherished sites is at risk. Liverpool’s loss is a humiliating moment for the country, but raises potentially longer-term questions about development around sites ranging from Stonehenge and the Palace of Westminster to Bath and the model village of Saltaire.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
×