Following exciting archaeological finds near the East coast, Ashok Kumar MP explains the importance of keeping tabs on our past and wonders whether the Olympics of tomorrow is overshadowing our ability to preserve all of our yesterdays

IT IS a sobering thought that, wherever you are, there is more than likely to be many thousands of years of history beneath your feet.

And nowhere is this more true than here in the North-East.

Consider this. The North-East from ancient times has been home to many ancient people. Beneath the hills of the North Yorkshire Moors archaeologists unearth finds, sites and other symbols that indicate how prehistoric people viewed their world and their place in that world.

Towns like Catterick and Piercebridge were once at the northern extremity of one of the mightiest empires the world has ever known - that of ancient Rome. Roman soldiers and settlers brought to our country the concept of towns and they increased trade with continental Europe. And it was in York that we saw the crowning of one of the greatest Roman rulers of all time - Emperor Constantine.

And archaeology shows that the area of East Cleveland, in my own constituency, has also been central to North Eastern history. Much of this is still visible in the form of the ruins of Gisborough Priory and the existence of medieval castle remains at Wilton, Skelton and Kilton.

In earlier days, Saltburn's Huntcliff was the site of a Roman signal station, while Iron Age forts such as Eston Nab and the contemporary settlement enclosures are common features across the hillsides of East Cleveland.

The news that a unique collection of Saxon artefacts such as jewellery and clothing, items which had been placed on the bed of a Northumbrian princess, had been unearthed near Loftus, was especially interesting to me.

I spoke to Steve Sherlock, the regional archaeologist who led the excavations, and secured a debate in the House of Commons aimed at making sure that these treasures remained in Teesside so that they could be studied and viewed by the people of the area in which they were found. The outcome was positive, with heritage ministers sharing my views and saying that they would do all they could to see that the treasures would stay in the area.

The work of archaeologists reminds us of our own mortality and tells us that we must preserve our cultural heritage, not just for ourselves but also for future generations. That is the reason why I believe archaeology has to be given a higher prominence and status in government thinking than perhaps it occupies now.

There are big issues facing archaeology. The most important is to see that the teaching of history is related to the archaeological dimension, so that students can see history not as a list of dates and events, but as an understanding how people and societies lived in the past. Secondly, there needs to be more attention paid to seeing that local people can help unearth the past of their own community.

The key factor in the work Steve Sherlock undertook at Loftus was that it involved Loftus people acting as volunteers in the discovery of their past.

To me that was great news. Volunteers play an enormously important role in the research and protection of our heritage - local community groups and archaeological societies often have a depth of local knowledge about their own area which means that they do an excellent job. Such groups need support, though, in funding and training. One source for that support comes from the Council for British Archaeology's own Community Archaeology Forum, a group that can offer advice and ideas that local people on the ground can access.

The third big issue for archaeology is that of its place within the country's planning system. Historically, planners have been under a duty to consult with archaeologists when planning applications have been received that could impact on possible historic remains. In old cities such as York and Durham, many valuable finds have been made in the negotiated space that lay between demolition of older buildings and the erection of new developments.

Indeed, it was the demolition of an old building in the East Midlands to make way for a McDonalds takeaway that allowed the uncovering of remains which may have marked the site of one of Boudecia's last battles against the Roman Legions.

The planning system is now going through a seachange to speed up development and cutting out what were seen as unnecessary delays. I support that aim, but I also believe that any new system needs to retain the flexibility to allow archaeologists to record our cultural heritage.

I believe it is important that archaeologists are given both the time and the money to make sure that potentially valuable and important finds are not lost for ever under a sea of concrete and steel.

The fourth and final big issue is to see that our museums have the capacity and the means to preserve and display the treasures found below our feet. Central to this is the need to make sure that local museums are allowed an adequate level of resources from Lottery funds.

THE bigger museums are doing well. Funding through the Department for Culture Media and Sports has risen to £336m this year. A key outcome of this is free entry to national museums, which has led to a 40 per cent increase in visits.

However, it is the smaller local authority museums - such as the Kirkleatham Museum in Redcar which will, I hope, be housing the Loftus treasures - that have to look to more diverse funding, often from pressurised budgets from local councils, income from charitable trusts and from the Lottery.

There is the threat that any more 2012 Olympic cost overruns will erode their chances of securing Lottery funding and this is something I promise to keep a vigilant eye on.

The Olympics will, of course, be a once in a century attraction, but that cannot be allowed to obscure the need for keeping alive local centres which conserve and display our cultural heritage.

That heritage is something people are fiercely proud of. Look, for example, at the campaign backed by many of the region's MPs to see that the Lindisfarne Gospels are retrieved from the British Museum so that they can be on permanent display in the region from which they originated, or the highly vocal and widely reported community campaign to stop quarrying destroying the unique Thornborough Henges in North Yorkshire.

These examples alone show how passionate people are to defend their own heritage - a passion that I endorse, as we owe it to future generations to ensure our cultural heritage is kept in safe hands.

* Dr Ashok Kumar is the MP for Middlesbrough South and Cleveland East