Today CPRE joined forces with 17 other organisations to launch our 'Vision for Planning' - our answer to the Government's damaging new changes. We're calling on the government to rethink major elements of its controversial planning proposals and work with stakeholders to deliver a planning system that puts people, climate and nature at its heart.
You can now view the recording on CPRE's YouTube page here.
The call comes from a broad and united coalition of housing, planning, transport, environmental, heritage and public health organisations that have worked together to forge their own alternative ‘Vision for planning’ in response to the government’s Planning White Paper, published in August last year. The government is expected to make a further announcement in March about whether and how it will take forward the proposals in the White Paper.
The joint ‘Vision for planning’ was launched at a virtual debate with speakers including the Housing Minister the Rt Hon Chris Pincher MP and was chaired by London City Hall’s Night Czar Amy Lamé.
Commenting on the new joint ‘Vision for planning’, Tom Fyans, deputy chief executive of CPRE, said:
‘We’re calling on the government to plan back better and work with us to develop a planning system that puts people, and tackling the climate and ecological emergencies, at its heart.
We all deserve a home we can genuinely afford to live in, and to have a say in shaping the communities around us. And for over 70 years, a toolbox has been in place to make sure that can happen: the planning system. But as things stand, under the government’s current proposals, the opportunity to influence what happens and where in our communities would be halved.
‘Before Christmas, the government announced a welcome revision of its housing numbers ‘algorithm’. However, this was only one small part of a range of potentially damaging proposals put forward by the government last year. That’s why we’re calling on Ministers to take an equally pragmatic approach to improving policies relating to community voice, affordable homes and access to green spaces. Together, we can develop a planning system fit for the 21st century.’
Peter Bowyer, Dorset CPRE Chair of Trustees, said:
'Building excessive housing can only be at the expense of our very special environment and our communities. Our environment is Dorset’s greatest economic asset. Our communities need appropriate homes to meet local need, including truly affordable homes for young families whom we need to keep and attract to work here and so help grow Dorset’s economy.
Dorset CPRE supports a locally led democratic planning system.'
The story so far:
On 6th August, government introduced changes to the planning system that would drastically reduce the ability of people to make decisions that affect them, reduce the numbers of genuinely affordable homes required of developers and leave the decisions on housing numbers to be made by computer algorithms.
- More than 300,000 people have signed petitions opposing the proposals
- 46 MPs spoke out against the proposals at parliamentary debate in October, including former PM Theresa May
- Almost every CPRE local group attended a private roundtable with Robert Jenrick
- And a campaigning success! - at the end of 2020 the Government made a U-turn on its centralised housing algorithm, however, this has made no difference to the housing targets being set for Dorset.
'Vision for Planning' marks the next step of our campaign for a planning system that provides much-needed housing in a sustainable way.
The joint ‘Vision for planning’ has been developed and supported by the following:
ARC (Amphibian and Reptile Conservation)
Association of Local Environmental Records Centres
Bat Conservation Trust
Campaign for National Parks
CPRE The countryside charity
Cycling UK
Friends of the Earth
Green Alliance
Mammal Society
Open Spaces Society
Ramblers
RSPB
The Heritage Alliance
Town and Country Planning Association
UK Green Building Council
Wildlife and Countryside Link
Wildlife Trusts
Woodland Trust