'Extremely worried': MPs react to planned 74% hike in South East housebuilding

  • Conservative MP Kieran Mullan and Liberal Democrat MP Vikki Slade voice their concerns at plans for increased housebuilding on ITV Meridian’s The Last Word

Opposition MPs say they are “appalled” and “extremely worried” by the government’s plan to significantly increase housebuilding across the South East. 

Ministers have announced a target for the region of 70,681 new homes every year, as part of their plan to see 370,000 built annually across England.

Kieran Mullan, Conservative MP for Bexhill and Battle, said he was "extremely worried” about the plans and felt the new targets “don’t take into account” the amount of protected land in Sussex.

Dr Mullan told ITV Meridian’s The Last Word programme: “I think the government is just going about this in completely the wrong way. I think there is an acceptance that you need additional homes. 

“My focus would be on unbuilt permissions. There are more than a million homes in the country which have planning permission that haven’t been built.”

Green belt land in Swanley, Kent Credit: PA

The shake-up of planning rules will see councils given increased mandatory targets with ministers telling councillors to “exhaust all your options” to meet the goals, including releasing the “right parts” of protected greenbelt land.

Labour’s MP for Ashford in Kent has welcomed the government’s approach and says he supports the progression of a major local development for more than 8,000 homes at Otterpool Park. 

Sojan Joseph said: “We all know that we are in a housing crisis. In the South East there are around 15,000 homeless households now.”

But Mr Joseph stressed the need for additional infrastructure to accompany development, adding: “In Ashford I have concerns about the overcrowded A&E, the roads and local GP surgeries.”

  • Labour MP Sojan Joseph tells ITV Meridian's The Last Word he supports the government's approach

The Ministry of Housing will order local councils to review their greenbelt boundaries to meet the new targets by identifying lower quality “grey belt” land that could be built on.

The updated national planning policy framework defines the grey belt for the first time as green belt land that “does not strongly contribute to green belt purposes”.

Safeguarding the countryside from encroachment and assisting in urban regeneration are no longer included as green belt purposes.

Liberal Democrat MP Vikki Slade argues that it is not the planning system which is holding up development but “developers not building the homes and councils not being able to build the social homes”. 

The former council leader, who represents Mid Dorset and North Poole, added: “There are 15,000 unbuilt homes which have planning consent, just in Dorset. If we focus there, I think the public will come with us.”

ITV Meridian’s monthly political programme, The Last Word, is on ITV1 at 10.55pm on Thursday, 12 December. It is also available on ITVX.

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