The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has threatened to place seven of Britain’s most significant cultural sites—including Edinburgh’s medieval Old TownÆon a list of 'World Heritage in Danger' in response to the country’s poor management of its historical landmarks.

Stonehenge, the Tower of London, Orkney’s neolithic ruins, Liverpool’s Georgian mercantile waterfront, Wesminster Abbey, and Bath’s city centre have, along with the Old Town, been deemed to be at risk from overdevelopment and sub-standard preservation efforts.

UNESCO is sending teams of inspectors to Edinburgh and Bath this winter to investigate claims that development projects threaten the “integrity” and “outstanding universal value” of the cities’ World Heritage Site medieval centres.

The organisation has reserved its harshest criticism for Edinburgh, where high-profile developments such as the Caltongate and the new hotel and office block nearing completion on the Royal Mile have been singled out.

In the final report of its July committee meeting in Quebec, UNESCO alleges that the UK breached World Heritage guidelines by not informing the organistion of approval being granted for the Caltongate project.

Koichiro Matsuura, UNESCO’s director general, has been fighting a war of words with developers over the Caltongate, suggesting that new development plans should be frozen until the study group has time to report back.

Speaking to The Scotsman on the subject of Edinburgh’s Old Town, Mr Matsuura said: “It is crucial that its outstanding features are preserved and protected.”

UNESCO has been supported in its criticism by architect Sir Terry Farrell, Edinburgh’s appointed "design champion," and Marcus Binney, chairman of Save Britain’s Heritage.

Mr Binney told The Guardian: “Heritage has taken a back seat to Cool Britannia and encouraging everything modern, and we're now uncomfortably in the limelight for failing to have proper policies to protect our world heritage sites, and timely criticisms are now being made.”

The threat to place landmarks such as the Tower of London and Westminster on the endangered list would put preservation efforts in the UK on a par with those of Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Iraq - other states whose sites are singled out by UNESCO.

John Graham, chief executive of Historic Scotland, has stood his ground in the face of UNESCO’s criticism, saying: “the judgements we’ve reached are sound and defensible.

“That is the stance we will be taking when the mission arrives.”