news story

28th July 2008

LocaL MP to Lead Parliamentary Challenge to Mass House-Building in South Glos.

Northavon MP Steve Webb has been chosen to lead a Parliamentary debate after the Summer recess on the Government's plans for mass house-building in South Gloucestershire.  

The MP has successfully obtained a 90 minute debate on the South West 'regional spatial strategy' which sets the framework for housing, transport and economic development in the region for the next 20 years.  

Public consultation on the plans started last week, and almost all of the period of consultation occurs when Parliament is not sitting.  

Steve Webb's debate seems likely to be the ONLY parliamentary scrutiny of the master plan before the timetable for public responses closes in mid October.   As well as the local MP, MPs from across the West are expected to attend the debate and register their concerns about the plans before a response is given by a Government minister.
 
Steve Webb said:
 
"It is a disgrace that the Government has launched a consultation on a major document such as this at the start of the Summer holidays.   If I had not secured a debate for the first week back after the recess there might have been no Parliamentary scrutiny of these plans at all, which is nothing short of outrageous.  

"I will be using the debate to highlight the real concerns I am hearing from local people about the threat to our countryside and about the lack of infrastructure such as roads, public transport and hospitals to support a massive expansion of the population. 

"We need to ensure that the Government is in no doubt that these plans must not go ahead as they stand".