Land Development in Birmingham

Green Belt land in Birmingham could soon disappear under a wave of concrete, campaigners warn.

The Government is increasing pressure for more houses to be built across the country, meaning that Green Belt areas around Birmingham could be set to become a new “battleground”.

Current predictions indicate that 50% more land than presently planned will be set aside for new homes in the West Midlands over the course of the next twenty five years.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) have issued a warning that the Government’s new policy is conflicting with the current trend for urban regeneration and “city living”.

While the West Midlands CPRE agreed that the “West Midlands needs more affordable homes,” their vice-chairman Peter Langley was also quick to add “swamping the market with greenfield land and playing fast and loose with the region's long-established Green Belts won't achieve that."

The West Midlands Regional Assembly consulted with local councils concerning the proposals.

Many of the councils have expressed their concerns with the Government’s housing figures, saying they cannot meet their targets without “great damage” to the countryside and market towns.

While Worcestershire County Council said that meeting the targets would mean expanding Redditch into the countryside, Coventry and Warwickshire were willing to use Green Belt land in order to expand their towns.

The CPRE have previously announced that a shift of people from the city to the countryside would mean house prices in rural areas would increase and become unaffordable to many local people.

Date: 2nd August 2006