The Queen’s Speech last week set out the Government’s agenda to deliver for future generations. The Government announced the Online Safety Bill to protect young people online, the Health and Care Bill, to improve healthcare - putting patients first, and the Skills and Post 16 Education Bill, to ensure flexible life-long access to quality education for a generation whose education has been interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also in the Queen’s Speech was the Planning Bill. On Tuesday, I spoke in the House of Commons chamber to send a clear message to Ministers that the forthcoming Planning Bill must protect our Green Belt, and our local housebuilding targets must be sustainable.
We know our Green Belt land is so important to our health and wellbeing, and it has an important environmental role too. If we are to hit our target of net zero by 2050, we need green spaces to cut atmospheric CO2, and these spaces also help to reduce flood risk and improve air quality.
Here in Sevenoaks, we are surrounded by stunning countryside - 93% of the District is Green Belt land and maintaining our greenspaces was a central pledge when I was elected to serve you as your Member of Parliament. As many of you will know, I raised local concerns about the algorithm in the Planning White Paper last October and I was therefore delighted when the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government confirmed that the algorithm would no longer be part of the planned reforms. But we must see further flexibility in housing targets for our area to reflect the high proportion of Green Belt.
Sevenoaks District Council has consistently overdelivered on our previous targets and I am clear that the Government should trust our excellent local authority to deliver sustainable housing, while protecting our environment for future generations.
