asked the Secretary of State for the Environment how many buildings are listed in England; how this figure compares with five years previously; and how many listed buildings were demolished in the last five years.

137,000 buildings were statutorily listed at 31st December, 1971, compared with 91,354 at the end of 1966—an increase of nearly 10,000 a year. No central records of demolitions were kept before 1969. The number of listed building consents for demolition granted in 1969 was 266, in 1970, 198 and in 1971, 203.

I welcome the dramatic increase in the number of buildings of architectural and historic interest which have been listed in recent years, but would not my hon. Friend agree that it is a shame and disgrace that so many listed buildings have been demolished in the last few years? Would he not think it proper and right that the Government should reinforce the existing legislation to safeguard these buildings? Would he not think that the proper Measure under which to do this is the Town and Country Planning (Amendment) Bill, now before Parliament?

The hon. Member is talking to philistines.

My hon. Friend will be pleased to hear that since the mid-1960s, despite the very large increase in the number of listed buildings, the number of those that have been demolished has been halved.

In endorsing entirely what the hon. Member for Birmingham, Handsworth (Mr. Sydney Chapman) has said, may I ask the Minister to go further, to widen the criteria and to act more firmly, so that episodes such as occurred in my constituency, when a very handsome Georgian building was scheduled for demolition by the Conservative Council and is therefore lost as a building of beauty, can never happen again?

The hon. Gentleman does not serve the issue by trying to turn it into a cheap party matter. We are widening the definition, as I am sure the House will be pleased to hear.

Can the Minister assure us that among the listed buildings which will not be demolished are Richmond Terrace and New Scotland Yard?

I am sure that the right hon. Gentleman would expect me to say that that is a specific question, and that he should put down a Question dealing with it.