DOWN HOUSE BID FOR WORLD HERITAGE STATUS

That this House notes with regret the failure of the International Council on Monuments and Sites to recognise Charles Darwin's former residence Down House as a significant site to the heritage of science and the consequent withdrawal of Down House's bid for World Heritage status; further notes the landmark scientific importance of Down House, where Charles Darwin wrote the revolutionary work On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection; looks forward to the 150th anniversary of the publication of this work and the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth in 2009; welcomes the Government's offer to host an international conference to discuss the criteria for scientific World Heritage sites; calls on the International Council of Monuments and Sites to reconsider its evaluation of Down House and its criteria for World Heritage listing; and urges the Government to maintain its commitment to Down House's bid.