Plans to scrap Green Belt dropped from regional plan
By Lincs Patriot on Mar 17, 2009 | In Local, National
The Government has rejected proposals to scrap much of the Green Belt around Nottingham. Instead ministers have decided to initiate a full review of land availability both in the existing built-up area of Nottingham and around the conurbation to establish the capacity to accept new building.
The prospect of major change to the Green Belt was controversially proposed by the panel following the examination in public of the draft East Midlands Regional Plan.
But that recommendation has been dropped in the final version of the Regional Spatial Strategy, just announced.
The plan sets out to deliver 430,300 new homes (East mids alone! Ed) in the period up to 2026 to meet the region's long-term housing needs. The latest statistics show the number of households in the region is projected to grow by some 564,000 over the next 20 years. According to the RSS at least 32 per cent, 137,500 homes, of the housing provision must be affordable.
The RSS focuses growth in the three cities of Nottingham, Derby and Leicester, where almost half of the region's population live, and Northampton and Lincoln. Significant levels of development should also be concentrated in the growth area towns of Corby, Kettering and Welling borough, the strategy stressed.
The plan sets an interim 10 per cent renewable energy target on development sites until councils are able to bring forward their own challenging targets. A new policy on air quality has also been added.
Communities and local government minister Sadiq Khan said: "The East Midlands needs a long-term strategy that strengthens the region’s economy, addresses housing shortages and tackles the threat of climate change.
"The population is growing rapidly with more people living alone and the gap between average houses prices and average wages is widening. If more homes are not built the housing ladder will grow even further out of reach leaving the next generation with nowhere to live."
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The author has read the 200 page plus East Midlands Regional Plan and it shows many reasons why we must get BNP representation in Europe:
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