Campaigners meet Shadow Secretary of State Hilary Benn MP to express concerns about local developments.
NANCY Platts, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven held a roundtable meeting today, Thursday March 5, bringing together campaign groups with the Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Hilary Benn MP, to express concerns about local developments.
Residents, who have been campaigning to save woods, fields and allotments in Craven Vale, Rottingdean, Ovingdean and Woodingdean, wanted greater powers to give them sustainable long term protection and more say in how their local areas would be developed.
Concerns were raised about congested roads and the high levels of pollution as well as the destruction of local woods and wildlife habitats.
Nancy said: “I have been supporting local groups who feel powerless in the face of attempts by developers to build on every green space in and around our villages and now even our allotments. I am very pleased that Hilary Benn accepted my invitation to meet residents, listen to their stories and respond to the issues they raised. I will continue to campaign with local people to oppose over development that will destroy woodland and damage historic villages.”
Hilary Benn, awarded the South Downs, National Park status in 2009 when Secretary of State for the Environment.
He said: “It was a pleasure to be back in Brighton again where I went to university and great to hear directly from local residents.
“A Labour Government will reintroduce a strengthened “brownfield first” policy, which will ensure that as much building as possible of homes needed locally takes place on previously developed land. And we will ensure greater transparency in the land market and strengthen powers for local authorities so that communities have more say in how their areas develop over time and where new homes should go.”
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