ONLY yesterday The Bolton News was reporting the danger to our heritage posed by the threat of fire.

One of those buildings cited was the Victorian Beehive Mills, which suffered another arson attack earlier this week.

Yet today we report that in the same week, planning officers have granted permission for the mill to be bulldozed to make way for 121 new homes.

Many people will be wringing their hands at the loss of more of the town's Victorian heritage.

Doubtless the change of the landscape, eradicating more of the image of Bolton's industrial past, is a shame. But it's a fact that these monolithic 19th century edifices have outlived their original purpose. Bolton is no longer a giant of industry which necessitates housing gigantic machinery now only on show in the steam museum.

As such, if a new purpose cannot be found for these remnants of our Victorian past, what else can be done to to re-purpose the land on which they stand? In the revised spatial framework, Bolton has managed to secure the privilege of being the only Greater Manchester authority which won't be building houses on its green belt.

Bolton has sufficient brownfield sites to accommodate the 14,000 new homes it needs to build over the next 18 years. And the Beehive Mills site is one of them. So it's a sacrifice the town will have to bear in the name of preserving its country views.