Heritage Skills Champions Present To Scottish Parliament
25 March 2009, The Cross-Party Group for Construction in the Scottish Parliament met on the 25th March 2009 at Holyrood, Edinburgh and discussed the repair and maintenance of Scotland's built heritage. Experts from the Scottish Stone Liaison Group, City of Edinburgh Council and Historic Scotland provided briefings on the latest developments and challenges facing the sector.
The group heard three expert presentations on the repair and maintenance of Scotland’s built heritage.
- Colin Tennant, CEO of the Scottish Stone Liaison Group, updated the group on developments since the launch of the 'Safeguarding Glasgow’s Stone-built Heritage' report which highlighted the craft skills and materials required to ensure its future, outlining many issues of relevance across Scotland.
- Murdo Macleod, Group Leader of Property Conservation, City of Edinburgh Council, outlined the enforcement powers that local authorities possess for dangerous buildings and how they are used in Edinburgh. This afforded MSPs the opportunity to understand the powers and responsibilities that local authorities have for dangerous buildings in their area.
- David Mitchell, Director of Historic Scotland’s Technical Conservation Group, explained the Memorandum of Understanding between Historic Scotland, ConstructionSkills and Scottish Qualifications Authority and advised MSPs of activities being undertaken to ensure a skilled workforce for traditional crafts.
After the presentations a lively debate followed in which the way forward was discussed in detail and the issues raised are likely to feature again at the next Cross-Party Group meeting – the AGM in May.
