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Approval for the South West Regional Strategy has been delayed until the
Autumn. Originally scheduled for January and then delayed until the end of
June by the huge number of responses to the Secretary of State’s
Consultancy document the final document will not now be delivered until the
autumn. The most recent delay has been caused by a successful legal
challenge to the East of England plan. The Government Office for the South
West is now reviewing the South West plan in light of the judge’s decision.
Read Media Story Page 1 Page 2
Anyone
involved in the RSS consultation process with have received the following
email from the Government Office for the South West:
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Thank you for your email addressed to the Secretary of State for
the Communities and Local Government regarding the South West Regional
Spatial Strategy. As you might expect, the Secretary of State receives a
large amount of correspondence and is not able to respond personally to all
the letters he receives, no matter how much he wishes to do so. This office
acts on behalf of the Secretary of State in relation to planning matters in
the South West and therefore, we have been asked to respond.
The
Secretary of States proposed changes were the subject of public consultation
between July and September 2008. I regret that no new representations can
be taken into account now, as to do so might be unfair to other
respondents.
However,
it may be helpful to set out the Government Policy on housing nationally as
set out in Planning
Policy Statement 3 (PPS3). It states that there is a presumption that
housing development should be prioritised towards previously developed
land. However, national planning policy recognises that some greenfield
land - undeveloped land that may or may not be needed for green belt - may
be needed for some development. PPS3
puts the responsibility on local authorities to decide where to locate
housing, to identify sites and to manage previously developed land back
into development where possible to minimise the call on greenfield and
designated green belt land.
I should
make clear that Government Policy regarding development on land designated
as green belt has not changed, there are strict planning controls on green
belt land and there is a general presumption against inappropriate
development within green belts. Any
proposal to change the boundary of a green belt and any development
proposal for land in the green belt, whatever its scale, is subject to stringent
tests. However, sufficient housing
to meet our needs has not been built for something like a generation. As a
result, there is a fundamental mismatch between the supply of housing and
the demand for housing. That is having an impact on affordability across
the south-west region and has the effect of putting home ownership out of
the reach of many and the Government needs to address that.
Whilst the
Government remains committed to preserving, enhancing and increasing the
green belt - and nationally, it continues to grow - this does not mean that
green belt policies should be set in stone. The Government agrees with the
Independent Panel who examined the Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS) that the
importance of meeting the region’s housing need in the most sustainable
locations provides the exceptional circumstances for making some
alterations to the three green belts in the region to allow for some
strategic urban extensions.
The exact
number of houses and the location of new build is something that the
Government is currently considering and I can assure you that we are taking
the views received very seriously.
The Secretary of State planned to publish the RSS at the end
of June 2009. However, on 20th May, the High Court issued a
judgment that the previously issued Regional Spatial Strategy for the East
of England had failed to meet certain requirements of the Strategic
Environmental Assessment Directive, in respect of three towns.
The Department for Communities and Local Communities and the
Government Office for the South West are considering the implications for
the South West Regional Spatial Strategy, but cannot reach a clear view
until the written judgment is issued by the Court. Setting a new timetable is not possible,
until the implications of the judgment have been clarified, and what action
is required, if any.
Our website (http://www.gosw.gov.uk/gosw/planninghome/691545/713860/?a=42496)
is updated regularly and will have the latest information on the position.
Yours sincerely
Carly Vaughan
RSS Team
Government Office for the South West
2 Rivergate,
Temple Quay,
Bristol BS1 6EH
Tel: 0117 900 1705
Fax: 0117 900 1914
www.gosw.gov.uk
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