Section 15 – Historic Sites and Monuments: permits
55.Section 10 of the 1994 Act makes it an offence to damage, destroy or remove any part of a historic site or monument. This reflects the provisions of Annex V to the Protocol which protect such historic sites and monuments. However, the prohibition in section 10 may on occasion impede effective conservation management of these sites, for example, where it is necessary to remove part of a monument or an object within a site temporarily for conservation or repair work.
56.This section amends section 10 of the 1994 Act to enable the Secretary of State to grant a new form of permit in respect of conservation or repair work of designated Historic Sites and Monuments. A consequential amendment to section 15 of the 1994 Act is also made, to ensure that in granting any such permit, the Secretary of State would be obliged to have regard to the provisions of the Protocol and to any measures adopted by the Antarctic Treaty Meeting.