EVEN THE CONSERVATIVES DISLIKE THE NEW PLANNING WHITE PAPer

BUILD, BUILD, BUILD, CONCRETE, CONCRETE, CONCRETE

The Conservative Government’s Planning White Paper ‘Planning for the Future’ was published in August.

It is a consultation and runs until 29th October.

Launching it, Boris Johnson described the current system as ‘beginning to crumble’. He said ‘The time has come to do what too many have for too long lacked the courage to do – tear it down and start again’.

The proposals include a much truncated local plan process and the creation of three ‘zones’ for development - Protected, Renewal and Growth. Whilst there is merit in reviewing the planning process, it’s been in place since 1947, it will have an even stronger presumption in favour of development and the consensus is that these proposals will be less democratic and won’t deliver any help with the climate crisis.

Most worrying for Elmbridge residents is the massive increase in new housing required to meet the Government’s revised ‘Standard Method.’ We didn’t like the old Standard Method, but the basic logic behind the algorithm (yes those pesky algorithms again) of building homes where there is development, not where they are needed is wrong. The increased numbers under the revised Standard Method formula are even more inappropriate and unachievable.

Published alongside the planning White Paper (but with a shorter consultation period – ending 1st October) the deeply worrying ‘Changes to the Current Planning System’ paper, driven by algorithms, defines the number of homes to be delivered. This is a genuinely dangerous piece of proposed legislation. It can just be sanctioned by the Secretary of State without much scrutiny, or need to justify this way of forcing higher building numbers on councils like Elmbridge where affordability, irrespective of how many houses we build, will always be an issue.

It recommends a revised Standard Method formula which raises the annual target for Elmbridge from the already unsustainable 623 to 775. This is in spite of the recently released 2018 ONS household predictions figure which indicate that Elmbridge will only need a third of this figure. This far exceeds what developers currently build. The average number of completions in Elmbridge over the last 5 years was 298 units a year, whereas the average number of permissions granted was 641.

It isn’t the planning system which is limiting the amount of building – it is the developers who don’t want to flood the market and cause prices to drop.

Elmbridge Council has challenged the Government by engaging with our two local MPs to encourage them to change the algorithms which produce these numbers.

The new White Paper is a developer’s charter to concrete over the Green Belt. We don’t have the space to build 775 homes every year (or anything near it) and we know it would destroy the character of our Borough.

Elmbridge enjoys vast tracts of green space has few large sites and little brownfield land. We rely on small sites to deliver affordable housing, however, the new White Paper requires affordable housing contributions only on developments of 50 or more houses - making it virtually impossible to deliver much needed affordable housing in Elmbridge. Currently the Borough has been able to obtain contributions towards affordable housing, if not the affordable homes themselves. If the minimum number increases from 10 to 50 it will mean that there will be virtually no affordable housing provided or affordable housing contributions required.

Our planning system should provide a balance between delivering the homes we need and respecting the environment and amenities of existing residents. The Government’s plans favour developers over local communities who will have virtually no say on the area in which they live.

For all the Conservative’s bluster about protecting green spaces, it will be impossible to achieve these housing numbers without considerable incursion onto Green Belt land.

These new proposals drive a horse and cart through local democracy (something the Conservatives seem keen to do with their plans to turn Surrey into a Unitary Authority) and would damage Elmbridge forever. Don’t just take our word for it - the Conservative leader of Wokingham Borough Council, Cllr. John Halsall also hates it. He’s threatened a naked protest unless housing numbers in his authority are reduced.

Cllr Halsall says, “The Conservative government’s contempt for local government is profound and must urgently think again about its new housing plan. Our party’s manifesto promised levelling up in the North, but the algorithm puts most homes in the South East. Most local authorities have skyrocketing increases in housing requirements. Any developer or landowner can present an application, and on refusal in most cases an appeal can be won.

The developer does not need to build homes, but they can just accumulate permissions; and the local authority will be sanctioned for not having fulfilled the quota. The Government’s proposal hides the reality that it will give pretty much all control to developers to carpet-bag the nation.”

The consultation is open until the 29th of October and there is information about how to respond in the Paper. Options for responding include via the website: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/planning-for-thefuture, emailing a response to planningforthefuture@communities.gov.uk or posting a response to Planning Directorate, 3rd Floor, Fry Building, 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF.