United Kingdon

The United Kingdom’s legislative framework is fragmented due to its constitutional structure, its geographic (England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland) and institutional divisions, as well as an ad hoc development of statutory protection. Heritage protection statutes have not been codified and their application can vary and even overlap.

The United Kingdom has ratified five of the six cultural conventions adopted under the aegis of UNESCO. It has not ratified the 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, albeit it applies most of the rules found in its Annex. It has ratified the other five conventions but their implementation tend to be minimal, in the sense that they are taken into consideration in policy documents but have barely led to statutory changes, the notable exception being the Cultural Property (Armed Conflicts) Act 2017 for the implementation of the 1954 Convention.