A push to replace London’s historic gas lamps with LED replicas would represent cultural vandalism, senior Conservative MPs have warned.
Almost 100 lamps in the capital that do not have listed status are under threat as Westminster Council officials plan to replace them with eco-friendly lights.
The council has claimed that replacing the lamps would help in its push to hit its 2030 carbon-neutral target.
Transport for London (TfL) has announced it converted more than half the lighting on displays in bus shelters across London to LED lighting. TfL is expected to save 1,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions every year when all the shelters go LED.
But campaigners including the Victorian Society, the London Gasketeers and senior politicians past and present are demanding that the gas lights are a special case.
They want each light to be listed which would mean they could not be replaced.
Broadcaster and former Tory MP Michael Portillo is among those urging the council to rethink, saying there is "a value to heritage", The Telegraph reports.
Mr Portillo said: "Of course you can make a case for efficiency and modernisation, but somebody has to make a case for heritage as well. Beauty is something which is worth preserving. It may have a cost – in this case a small cost, but one I think is well worth paying.
"It creates an ambience, it illuminates the buildings as they would have been illuminated from its earliest days – and all of that I think is worth preserving."
Westminster Council started the process of replacing 300 gas lamps as part of a £6 million refit of street lighting in 2022.
Later that year, it bowed to pressure by agreeing to save 174 lamps in prominent positions, but still plans to convert 94 unlisted lamps to "make a positive contribution to reaching the council’s zero carbon target by 2030".
Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, another former Cabinet minister, said: "I am fortunate to live in a street illuminated by the gentle glow of gas light. These lamps are part of Westminster’s heritage, and removing them would be an act of vandalism to a picayune green advantage."
Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, an 82-year-old Conservative peer whose home would be affected by the council’s proposals, added: "I can’t understand the approach of today’s Westminster Council in trying to get rid of them and put in lights that are far worse for eyesight and far worse for vision."
Some optometrists have raised concerns about the rise of ultra-bright LED lights which glare at night and make it difficult for some drivers.
Tim Bryars and Luke Honey, the co-founders of the London Gasketeers, said: "We are campaigning to save original, historic, working gas lamps and the jobs and skills of the lamp lighters who maintain them. Modern LED approximations are not the answer.
"The emissions produced by the gas lamps are tiny – estimated at 0.0088 per cent of the borough’s emissions. Huge events like Winter Wonderland come round once a year. The gas lamps are there for everyone, all year round."
Nickie Aiken, local Tory MP who represents Cities of London and Westminster, hailed the Gasketeers as "true heroes who are right to campaign to protect these historic gas lamps".
Westminster councillor Paul Dimoldenberg, Cabinet Member for City Management and Air Quality, said: "Westminster City Council is committed to ensuring that the special character of the existing lighting is retained. Our whole approach is focused around preservation – that’s why our partnership with Historic England is so important."
"We understand that many people are as passionate as we are about the heritage of our city. We are waiting for the results of Historic England's inspections of our unlisted gas lamps, and depending on their recommendations, we will only consider installing replacement lamps that meet the highest possible standards of historical authenticity."
