The proposed reforms to the Planning system are the biggest challenge to democracy that are currently being put forward by this government. These reforms are rapidly heading towards even greater autocracy. The aims they are claiming to propound are spurious and meaningless and are purely included to attempt to give good reasons for bad legislation. This will result in a charter for developers to build whatever they wish, wherever they wish, whenever they wish with no thought to true affordable housing, the economy – other than their own, the environment, existing residents, countryside, habitats, pollution, quality of build. The many key workers of cities, towns and villages will still not be able to afford to buy their own home or be able to afford the uncontrolled rents since the deregulation of the Housing Associations that at being run for profit by large ‘friendly to this government’ overseas, and a few home grown conglomerates, to provide unregulated sub standard accommodation for vast profit – some at the expense of the tax payer – that will become the slums of today and tomorrow. A fine legacy for this government with purely self interest and ‘party donations’ at the heart of these reforms.

The new planning proposals will be a developers charter. The planning regulations as they stand can and are being manipulated to disempower at a neighbourhood level. The GMSF has been used by Rochdale council to bulldoze through proposals which have nothing to do with the principles of the GMSF but everything to do with increasing council tax and new homes bonus take by building on precious and protected green belt land. This is evident in the wholesale loss of green belt which is protected for a purpose, such areas are the lungs of the borough for all and once gone are gone forever. It is not necessary when so much brown field is available. Nowhere is the financial motive mentioned in any of the GMSF papers for any of the green belt site proposals. This is typical of the smoke and mirrors which characterises the whole process, the GMSF is a huge exercise in deception and misinformation with regard to the potential green belt loss. The lack of transparency and authoritarian imposition of decisions undemocratically decided will only get worse with the new bill.

The mobilization of citizens is strategic for local and global development. Reconquest of the common good shared and planned together in all places in Europe is a key point of democracy

I am very worried that projects can take place more easily if the land is not green belt. Some areas may have become far more green over the years and this will not be taken into consideration. We really need to conserve the wild spaces that we have.