UNESCO: 80th Anniversary

Debate between Gregory Campbell and Jonathan Davies

Tuesday 18th November 2025 Westminster Hall

[Jonathan Davies]

The right hon. Lady makes a good point. There are challenges associated with cultural landscapes and living sites, but there are many examples of where we can make that work. Having a national strategy would provide a shared view across Government Departments to best support the sites. I will say something later about the specific site she mentioned.

I was pleased to re-establish the APPG, which we can use to help build the components for a national strategy, share good practice for sites across the UK, and track and influence Government legislation, so that we can harness all the benefits those sites offer. Having a national strategy would also foster a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced by the range of sites across the UK, allowing a joined-up approach to dealing with them. I would be grateful to hear the Minister’s thoughts on the merits of a national strategy for the UNESCO world heritage sites in the UK, and whether the Government might consider following the Republic of Ireland, which has adopted one with a degree of success.

I was pleased to see in the recently published curriculum review an aspiration for all young people to engage with local history as part of their education. UNESCO’s world heritage sites in the UK are a great asset to help deliver that. UNESCO is so much more than world heritage sites; it deals with the foundations of our knowledge of the world and each other. UNESCO’s designations, which include biosphere reserves, global geoparks, creative cities, learning cities and intangible cultural heritage, reflect that breadth. Every UNESCO designation is part of a global network spanning more than 190 countries. That network connects communities, scientists, cultural organisations and educators with their counterparts across the world. Despite that extraordinary breadth, UNESCO remains united by a single purpose: an ambitious, internationalist commitment to freedom, peace and equality, with education at its heart.

When war tore across Ukraine, UNESCO trained 50,000 Ukrainian teachers in online methods, ensuring that a generation of children did not lose their education, despite Russia’s brutal invasion. UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition has championed girls’ education, literacy for women and the principle that talent, not geography or sex, should determine a child’s future. UNESCO’s scientific achievements are truly inspiring. In 1951, it brought together Governments in Paris to develop the first resolution that led directly to the creation of CERN, helping to transform the same scientific disciplines once used for destruction into one of the world’s greatest symbols of international collaboration. More recently, through its Nippon Foundation partnership, nearly 30% of the ocean floor has now been mapped, revealing insights into our climate and marine life.

In the realm of culture, UNESCO’s mission has surpassed preservation and now involves conservation and even reconstruction. The Revive the Spirit of Mosul initiative secured more than $117 million to restore mosques and heritage lost to war, rebuilding not just structures but the collective memory and sense of belonging that they embody. This is UNESCO at its strongest—not lofty ideals, but tangible actions that promote peace. It represents the very best of our collective endeavours as one human race.

Britain’s UNESCO sites also bring money into our communities at a time when it is hard to come by, through tourism and footfall, new business opportunities and local economic growth, and direct funding, both public and private. One of the most significant sources of funding is the National Lottery Heritage Fund, which has been supporting British heritage since 1994. Today I am delighted to report that, for the first time, National Lottery heritage funding into British UNESCO sites has surpassed £1 billion. I know the Minister will want to join me in celebrating that amazing milestone. I want to cite just a few examples of where that money has contributed in every nation of the United Kingdom.

Over £22 million has come into the Derwent valley, including £9.5 million for Derby’s Museum of Making, which was opened in 2020 and co-designed with local people. It reconnects communities across Derbyshire and further afield with our industrial heritage—something we have only come to appreciate more in recent years.

The National Lottery Heritage Fund has provided £12 million to the National Slate Museum in Llanberis. The slate landscape of north Wales, where quarries, mines and communities evolved together, remains a stronghold of the Welsh language and identity. That funding has created a learning centre, play area, shop, café and improved accessibility, ensuring everyone can share in that wonderful heritage.

In the Wester Ross Biosphere in the north-west highlands, £750,000 of funding supported the Inverbroom estate’s transformation from a traditional highland estate into a beacon of nature and recovery. That created jobs and opened a path to a sustainable future where Scotland’s natural heritage thrives alongside its communities. And in Northern Ireland, £3 million helped the Giant’s Causeway community build a world-class visitor centre.

[Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry) (DUP)]

I was hoping that the hon. Gentleman would turn to the Giant’s Causeway UNESCO world heritage site. Does he agree that that is one of the nation’s tremendous tourism facilities, but we have to be very careful with it, because there have been attempts by developers in recent years to put offshore wind farms in immediate proximity to it? We must be extremely cautious about proceeding with developments of that nature in such close proximity to a national heritage site.

[Jonathan Davies]

That is a challenge. A few sites, including the one in my constituency, have a buffer zone in which development must be tightly controlled. We need to get more energy from renewables, but there is a balance to be struck at valuable sites such as the Giant’s Causeway, which welcomes hundreds of thousands of people each year and shows how funding heritage can protect natural wonders while opening them up for all to enjoy.

Across every nation and region, in so many different ways, UNESCO sites are a locus for communities to celebrate their culture, understand their history and prepare for the future. Aside from the numerous benefits they provide, our UNESCO sites have the potential to help us tackle two key challenges.

First, too many people feel disconnected and alienated. That is expressed through frustration, but also a turn to extremes. UNESCO sites do not provide quick fixes and nor are they the sole solution, but by investing in what is unique, sustainable and culturally valuable in our towns, cities and landscapes we restore a sense of connection, allow a palpable sense of local identity to return, and give communities a real stake in their future. That must be recognised as part of the national renewal that the Government rightly seek. It goes beyond our pride in place programme and engages with what our places mean to us, as well as how they look.

The second challenge is our role on the world stage. I am delighted that we have a Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Minister responding to the debate. Although trade deals have boosted UK business and our defence investment is helping build a more secure world, cuts to international aid have raised concerns about our global standing. UNESCO offers a powerful vehicle for leading on the international stage, fostering progress and promoting peace. Its work can prevent conflict from erupting, help adversaries to see one another’s humanity, and encourage reconciliation after war. That is not to mention the work needed to tackle climate change, which is an ever growing cause of conflict across the world. We are leading on climate change through robust action in the UK, but our collective efforts can succeed only if they are fully international. Domestic alienation and international conflict are two sides of the same coin; UNESCO’s mission helps us to address both.

The UK is home to some of the world’s most respected minds in science, culture and education. Their expertise enriches UNESCO through research, conservation, diplomacy and teaching. The UK is home to 29 UNESCO chairs—world-leading experts advancing research on climate change, cultural heritage, artificial intelligence ethics, ocean science and education. Their work directly shapes global policy and drives innovation. Greater engagement with UNESCO, nationally and internationally, is a low-cost, high-impact way to tackle two defining challenges of our age. Done well, it can restore pride in place at home and pride in the UK’s role abroad.

I very much look forward to hearing from colleagues about the fantastic contributions that UNESCO sites make across the country. We have the resources to contribute through UNESCO to peace, equality and a better future for humankind. I look forward to hearing from my hon. Friend the Minister not only a celebration of this important organisation, but a recommitment to our place within it.