---

Stonehenge

My hon. Friend and neighbour knows that Chitterne and many of our villages are plagued by satnav lost sheep. Lorries from all over Europe regularly get stuck on completely inappropriate roads signed on satnav as the best way to get from A to B. I have pursued the matter with the Department for Transport during the past 18 months or so, but the Department can do precious little about it—it requires Europe-wide action. The real problem is that whatever satnav might say, a driver confronted with a road must rely on signs. If a sign says that the road is narrow, has a weight limit or other restriction or is otherwise inappropriate—and if the driver can read English—it will work, but there is nothing physically to prevent truck drivers from driving down an inappropriate road and getting stuck. It is a massive problem, and we have yet to come up with a solution. How right he is to draw attention to it. Will the Government please consider afresh the potential in the long term for tolling or shadow tolling, a major road improvement for the strategic A303 route? I have raised the point before. Of course I do not mean toll booths either side of Stonehenge; smart cards or even global positioning system technology will soon be equal to the challenge. Design, build, finance and operate contracts, with shadow tolling, are well tried in this country and could be an attractive option for the medium to long term. In April 1986, UNESCO said that the A344 past the stones must be rerouted. In November 1986, the UNESCO world heritage committee"““noted with satisfaction the assurances””" that the closure was being seriously considered. In April 2002, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport told UNESCO that planning consent for the new visitor centre would be submitted, and the highways consent procedure for the tunnel initiated, in December. In 2003, UNESCO welcomed the decision to construct a bored tunnel and asked for a report by 1 February 2004, which DCMS provided, albeit on 28 May 2004. UNESCO then asked for another report by 1 February 2005, which did not come. In summer 2005, it asked for an updated report by 1 February 2007. Meanwhile, in 2006, it noted that DCMS had provided no time frame for the Stonehenge project and that management was weak. In July this year, the world heritage committee received a brief report full of good intentions that said how difficult it all was. Now the Government are washing their hands of Stonehenge and leaving it to the Minister of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, to pick up the pieces. I do not doubt her good intentions and determination. She needs all the support that she can get.