House Building on Greenfield Land

MPs from across the Bradford district are demanding changes to Government policy aimed at boosting house building, amid fears the countryside will become overrun.

More than 100 MPs have signed a motion to change the draft house building policy as they fear any relaxation in controls will undermine city centre regeneration efforts and cut up the countryside.

Bradford West MP Marsha Singh, Shipley MP Philip Davies, Keighley MP Ann Cryer, and Batley and Spen MP Mike Wood have all signed the petition.

Mr Singh said: "I think it's important that we go for brownfield sites first.

"We do need to protect our green areas, particularly in the inner city because they are like a green lung. There has to be a balance of development.

"There are a number of brownfield sites in Bradford that really should be prioritised."

Mrs Cryer said she feared some people in her constituency were buying houses with large gardens not for the gardens but to build on the land.

She said: "I know people want to buy to build in parts of Ilkley and Keighley and fill every nook and cranny. We need a debate on this issue before we can move forward.

"I have a lovely garden which has the space to build a bungalow but I simply would not."

Mrs Cryer said she had always been in favour of leaving greenfield and only building on brownfield sites.

Mr Davies said the problem was that the Government interfered with decisions that should be made locally.

"Planning is a major issue in Shipley and of major concern. Residential planning should all be done at local level as otherwise councils fear local decisions will be overturned," he said.

In recent years there has been a substantial shift towards reusing previously developed land and buildings in towns and cities instead of tearing up the countryside.

Bradford's plans for urban housing are in evidence in the raft of historic buildings and mills being restored and regenerated in the city.

The Council has been trying to influence the Government's Regional Spatial Strategy which will become law in 2007 and is a framework for development.

It calls for more than 30,000 homes to be created across the district by 2021.

But the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) believes the Govern-ment's proposed housing policy as it stands is a recipe for dispersed, car- dependent development.

It claims the policy would encourage greenfield sprawl, harm prospects for urban regeneration and do little to provide genuinely affordable homes.

CPRE planning officer Kate Gordon said: "The Government's new policy would deprive councils of vital powers to prevent developers from cherry-picking easy greenfield sites and ignoring less profitable brownfield sites."

Bradford Council has failed to hit a Government target for dealing with planning applications.

Guidelines say at least 60 per cent of applications must be completed within 13 weeks.

Figures released this week show Bradford ranked 13th, with only 58.6 per cent of decisions made within the timeframe last year.

Neighbouring Kirklees fared much better, ranked fourth with 72.4 per cent, while Calderdale was at number 21 with 38.1 per cent.

Date: 14th July 2006
Source: This Is Bradford