The U.N.'s cultural agency UNESCO on Wednesday voted narrowly to remove Liverpool's waterfront from its list of world heritage sites, citing concerns about overdevelopment, including plans for a new football stadium, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah.
At committee talks chaired by China, 13 delegates voted in favor of the proposal and five against – just one more than the two-thirds majority required to delete a site from the global list.
"It means that the site of Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City is deleted from the World Heritage List," Tian Xuejun, chairperson of UNESCO's World Heritage Committee, declared.
It is only the third such removal, after previous decisions affecting Oman and Germany.
Over two days of committee discussions, delegates heard that the redevelopment plans, including high-rise buildings, would "irreversibly damage" the heritage of the historic port in northwest England.
The International Council on Monuments and Sites, which advises UNESCO on the heritage list, said the U.K. government had been "repeatedly requested" to come up with stronger assurances about the city's future.
The planned new stadium for Everton football club was approved by the government without any public enquiry, and "is the most recent example of a major project that is completely contrary" to UNESCO goals, it said.
But U.K. Culture Minister Caroline Dinenage told the committee that her government was serious about preserving Liverpool's character, arguing that delisting "would be a huge loss."
Liverpool's newly elected mayor Joanne Anderson said she was "really disappointed" in the decision and would try to appeal.
"It's quite difficult for me to comprehend how UNESCO would rather have us having an empty dock site rather than the Everton stadium at Bramley Moore Dock," she said.
Several countries backed the U.K., agreeing it would be a "radical" step in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, and urging more time for a new city council elected in May.
A corruption scandal linked to regeneration funding had engulfed the old city leadership, prompting the national government to step in temporarily before the May local elections across Britain.
Those against delisting Liverpool included Australia, whose own listing for the Great Barrier Reef is threatened in this year's UNESCO deliberations.
Others opposing included Brazil, Hungary and Nigeria, arguing any step should be deferred a year to give the U.K. and Liverpool authorities more time.