At his first Prime Minister’s Questions in July last year, I asked the Prime Minister to reassure my constituents that they would have a meaningful say over the new development in the green belt in their area. He said that the Government “will work with communities” - but this Bill could not be further from that promise.
We are seeing housing targets go through the roof in rural areas, as green-belt protections are removed.
Targets in East Herts and Broxbourne are going up by more than 20%. The loss of protections for unrestricted sprawl around villages I represent is extremely worrying for my constituents who live in Brickendon, Hertford Heath, Great Amwell, Stanstead Abbotts and St Margarets, as their unique character and historical charm could be lost forever.
It is far too common for new housing to be built without the increase in public service capacity to match.
In Broxbourne, we have already had more than our fair share of development. Thousands of new homes have been built in the past few years, but new or expanded infrastructure to take the strain off our already overstretched services is nowhere to be seen, and it is having a serious impact on my constituents. A Health Minister has admitted to me that patients trying to see their local GP in my constituency are more likely than the national average to wait two weeks. Drivers are forced to sit in traffic as roads clog up, and I hear time and again that parents are unable to get their child into the local school that they want.
The Planning and Infrastructure Bill reveals that the Labour Government have their priorities wrong. Local people should have the largest influence over where new housing development goes and when it happens in their communities, not Ministers in Whitehall. Click above to watch my full speech.
