New housing on Southern greenbelts

In an effort to produce more affordable housing in England and to fulfil housing quotas, the Government has agreed to allow building in green belt areas in the Rural South East.

The Government’s plans were met with both approval and disapproval, as country people worried about the adverse affects this will have on rural towns in the future, while economists praised the move.

There are 654,000 homes included in the plans that will be placed on Brownfield land in the South East near Oxford, Guildford, and Chertsey.

Included in the plan are environmental controls and regulations such as a requirement that 16% of the consumed energy from the new housing lots must be provided from renewable resources before the year 2026.

Tories voiced concern that the Government was ‘concreting’ the rights of the South East and member Edward Dawson from the Campaign to Protect Rural England said this would only lead to more building approvals in the green belt in the years to come.

Concern among Tories is high that in the future, once the recession passes, people will use this example to rationalise and demonstrate that Green Belt areas should be open for commercialisation and development leading to a destruction of rural England.

From the other side of the house, Communities Minister, Sadiq Khan, commented that more housing is needed due to the rise in immigration, aging populations, and single person residences.

Simply put, there is a larger demand for residential property than ever before and this will continue to be an out-stripped demand if the needs of the country are not met.