Heritage protection in England: the New Labour legacy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the New Labour governments’ approach to amending the regime for the protection of heritage assets in England.Design/methodology/approach – The paper critically reviews New Labour policy documents alongside contemporary research‐based literature.Findings – The terms heritage, conservation and sustainability are increasingly regarded as synonyms. While providing initiatives for the built heritage, New Labour urban policy was set in the context of domestic economic and political restructuring and increased international environmental awareness. This has made managing the heritage environment at both national and local levels more challenging, an aspect that has been exacerbated by the New Labour government's introduction of performance targets and new operational languages.Originality/value – The paper offers an applied consideration of three specific aspects of recent heritage protection direction.