There’s an excellent article by Harriett Baldwin on the Blue Blog about the Government’s ludicrous imposition of housing targets on local communities. Harriett is the Prospective Conservative MP for West Worcestershire but her comments are equally applicable here in Salford.
Here in Salford, the Government – through the imposed Regional Spatial Strategy – has demanded that we plan to build over 30000 new homes over the next decade and a half, regardless of the consequences. The net result of this is Council proposals to build on inappropriate greenfield sites like Burgess Farm as well as flood the City Centre with flats that no-one wants to buy.
That’s why it is so important that local residents have their say on the draft Core Strategy and make it clear that they do not think that these proposals are suitable for Salford.
A Conservative Government would take an entirely different approach. Conservatives would abolish the top-down imposition of housing targets and hand control over development back to locally accountable councillors. This would allow for organic, windfall-type development as well as community-led affordable housing to develop once again in the local area in response to demand.
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