Eastleigh MP Mims Davies has raised the lack of local control of planning in the House of Commons. Speaking in a debate she highlighted to the Housing Minister the ongoing challenge for areas without Local Plans. In the Chamber Mims said “We need fairer planning rules, so that we can find the right balance. The problem is that there is no plan, so there is nothing to work from. That is what I am seeking to highlight… One person’s new carpet and shiny new kitchen is another person’s concern about losing green space so decisions will always be finely balanced.”
After her speech Mims said that “Over the next five years I will be using every opportunity to make sure that the people of Eastleigh have a say over the future of our communities. We need a Local Plan, we need parish councils and we need Neighbourhood Planning to seize control from developers and take charge of Eastleigh’s bright future.”
The recent rejection of Eastleigh Borough Council’s Local Plan by the Planning Inspector has left our area without the planning protection that a well-developed plan could have provided.
Mims said “I want Eastleigh’s future to be in our own community’s hand. The Borough Council let us down by failing to put together an effective local plan. I am taking the matter up directly with the Housing Minister in the House of Commons instead.”