Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Hinckley and Bosworth, has attacked a decision by Angela Rayner, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, to increase housebuilding targets in Hinckley and Bosworth by 59% per year, while reducing the numbers in the cities like Leicester and London.
Changes to the National Planning Policy Framework would see Hinckley and Bosworth’s annual target of building 432 new houses per year rise to 689, an increase of 257 per year.
Hinckley and Bosworth stand to feel the impact more significantly due to the local Liberal Democrat-run Borough Council not having an up-to-date Local Plan.
A Local Plan is put together by the Borough Council and sets out where development should and shouldn’t be across a community. Without a full and up-to-date Plan in place, housebuilding can happen in a ‘speculative’ way, with developers chancing their arm of getting housing passed without a joined up approach to manage such building. Hinckley and Bosworth hasn’t had an up-to-date Local Plan for five years, and implementation of a Plan which is currently being consulted on has been delayed until 2026 at the earliest.
The new Deputy Prime Minister announced a raft of reforms to the planning system, increases to mandatory housebuilding targets in rural areas like Hinckley and Bosworth and has overseen the removal of references to ‘beauty’ from the Government’s guidance on housebuilding to Councils.
Local MP, Dr Luke Evans, who has successfully campaigned for stronger protections for Neighbourhood Plans – which are put together by Parish Councils and small groups of volunteers in the village and allocate suitable sites for housebuilding – has criticised the new Labour Government’s “readiness to override local concerns in favour of mandatory Westminster-made targets.”
Analysis following the announcement by Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, has found that housebuilding targets have been reduced in constituencies held by Labour cabinet members such as Sir Keir Starmer, David Lammy and Wes Streeting.
Furthermore, planning commentators have called the new formula a “mutant algorithm on steroids” which has seen “huge housing uplifts in parts of the country where (statistically) housing is most affordable and extra housing is least needed.”
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Hinckley and Bosworth, said “I have always argued that we need homes for young people and families to grow into and houses for older generations to downsize to, but – and this is crucial – they must be the right homes, in the right places, with the right infrastructure, and the right protections in place for our heritage and environment.
“Under the previous Government I successfully campaigned for the housebuilding algorithm to prioritise brown field sites and cities with infrastructure, such as Leicester, over green field sites which can be used for agricultural purposes. I’m disappointed to see the Labour Government reverse this necessary change, with housebuilding in our area set to increase by a massive 59%.
“This is compounded by the fact that our Liberal Democrat-run Borough Council have continually failed to implement an up-to-date Local Plan, which puts in place the necessary protections for our infrastructure and has ridden roughshod over local people who have given their time to put in place Neighbourhood Plans.
“Communities across Hinckley and Bosworth are already seeing the impact that not having an up-to-date Local Plan has on our infrastructure. This is turning into a nightmare where we have the perfect storm of a Labour Government riding roughshod over local people, compounded by a Lib Dem council that have failed to put necessary protections in place!
“I dread to think what effect this added pressure will have on our roads, schools and GP surgeries. I will continue to raise these issues both locally and in Westminster, and I will be raising my objections in the strongest possible terms.”
Peter Bedford, Member of Parliament for Mid Leicestershire, added "I am deeply concerned about the significant increase in housebuilding targets across the Borough. Villages like Ratby have already seen a near doubling in size over recent years; such a marked increase will place yet more pressure on the rural communities.
“I pledge to work closely with Dr Luke Evans MP to ensure that the Government's proposals are properly scrutinised, and that resident's views always take precedence over Whitehall targets."
