Urban sprawl

by Sean O'Hare

PLANS to 'ratchet up' the number of new homes already proposed for South Bucks and Chiltern District over the next 20 years have led to fears of urban sprawl, traffic congestion and loss of Green Belt.
The draft South East Plan, prepared by the South East England Regional Assembly and submitted to the Government in March 2006, suggested the building of 1,880 homes in South Bucks District and 2,900 in Chiltern District between 2006 and 2026.

The draft also outlined housing locations and the requirement for key infrastructure such as roads, water, electricity and green spaces to support the growth.
An independent panel, appointed by the Government to examine the draft, suggested last week that this number should be increased by 80 in South Bucks and 500 in Chiltern District, while recommending the decentralisation of infrastructure funding, with the setting up of a regional infrastructure fund.
In response, Martin Tett, Buckinghamshire County Council's cabinet member for strategic planning, said: "Although these may appear relatively small numbers, much of the area is within the Green Belt and also the Chiltern Area of Natural Beauty. Finding large development sites will be very challenging for our district councils.
"We believe that it is crucial to link new house building to a clear commitment from central Government to provide the funding for key infrastructure such as new and improved roads, adequate open space and health facilities.
"We will certainly be keeping up pressure on Government to make sure adequate funding is secured and we will be working with our partners to ensure that necessary jobs accompany new homes if we are to avoid creating commuter dormitories.
"We will look to Gordon Brown to honour his commitment to robustly protect the Green Belt.
"Any attempt to 'ratchet up' the new housing numbers even more or make the targets 'minimums', could lead to urban sprawl and major congestion.
"We have a beautiful county with lovely towns and villages. We must seek to balance the need for housing growth with protecting our environment for future genera