MP raises issues with Secretary of State in House of Commons
Yesterday, during Local Government Questions in the House of Commons, John Baron MP urged the Government for action and clarity regarding various aspects of its unauthorised development and Green Belt policy.
John asked,
“We are thankful for Government help over the clearance of the illegal Traveller site at Dale Farm, and we recognise it has introduced measures to make unauthorised development more difficult. But locally we also believe more needs to be done, so what further steps can the Government take? For example, is it considering making unauthorised development a criminal offence – always taking into account what is reasonable?”
The Secretary of State, Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, first of all congratulated John for coordinating the Government’s response to the Dale Farm site. He then said that the Government was looking to take further measures, including reforming Temporary Stop Notices, which are presently out to consultation. However, he was reluctant to make unauthorised development a criminal offence.
John then asked the Secretary of State,
“Local councils would be helped if they had more clarity as to the Government’s ‘Duty to Cooperate’ with neighbouring authorities when looking for land to develop. For example, if one local authority asks another for cooperation, and they refuse, has the box been ticked, or is there further recourse?”
The Secretary of State said in response that further clarification will be forthcoming from the Department. The ‘Duty to Cooperate’ should persuade neighbouring authorities to think more strategically than they do at present.
John said afterwards,
“The Government needs to do all it can to help local councils when it comes to tackling unauthorised development. We shall continue to monitor this space closely. The Government also needs to help us to protect our Green Belt, and this is why clarification on certain issues is important.”
Ends
Word Count: 325
Date: 19th March 2013
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