CAB129-45 — Page 298

235

Page 298

a s

hahorietan od biborz nobiety adrbol (5)

ANNEX

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE GOWERS COMMITTEE MAKE

"Creation of Historic Buildings Counci

(i) That a statutory body should be created for England and Wales and another for Scotland and entrusted with duties both general and specific for further- ing the preservation of houses of outstanding historic or architectural interest. These might be called the Historic Buildings Council for England and Wales and the Historic Buildings Council for Scotland.

(ii) That the Councils should be appointed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer who should be responsible to Parliament for them. Appointments to the Scottish Council should be made in consultation with the Secretary of State for Scotland.

(iii) That the Councils should be required to present annual budgets and annual reports and accounts, the accounts to be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-General.

Relation of Councils to Existing Authorities

(iv) That the Councils should absorb the National Buildings Record and its Scottish Council.

.

(v) That the Councils should co-operate closely with the Royal Commissions on Ancient and Historical Monuments.

(vi) That the Council should become the central authorities for advising Government Departments, the planning authorities and owners and others on all matters relating to historic buildings and their contents.

(vii) That in order to get rid of the confusion caused by the existence of two different sets of statutory provisions for the protection of historic houses, the Ancient Monuments Acts should be amended so as no longer to apply to such houses, leaving them subject only to the relevant provisions of the Town and Country Planning Acts, 1947.

(viii) That these latter provisions should be administered as at present by the planning authorities, but under the guidance of the Historic Buildings Councils.

(ix) That the Councils should take over the responsibility for compiling the lists of buildings of special historic or architectural interest under Section 30 [28] of the Town and Country Planning Acts, 1947.

Designation of Houses of Outstanding Interest and their Contents

(x) That each Council should compile a list of houses of outstanding historic or architectural interest, which should be known as " designated " houses. These lists should be published.

(xi) That each Council should also be empowered to list such of the contents as go to make up the "unity" of a designated house in cases where preservation as a unity is important. These lists should not be published but should be available for inspection.

(xii) That owners of listed contents should be required to give notice to the Council of any intention to remove them.

Policy

(xiii) That designated houses should, so far as possible, be preserved as private residences occupied preferably by the families connected with them.

Tax Reliefs

(xiv) That the owner-occupier of designated houses should be entitled to the following tax reliefs subject to showing their houses to the public and certain other conditions, namely:-

(a) Relief from income-tax and surtax in respect of approved expenditure on

repairs to and maintenance of the house and contents.

(b) Relief from death duties on the house, listed contents and amenity land

so long as they are not sold.

(c) Relief from death duties (subject to certain conditions) on property assigned

Pagtrustees fomaintain the house out of the income offthgeproperty 587 Special provisions would apply to the case where the owner is not the occupier.