Wiltshire Conservatives have issued a stark warning following the Liberal Democrat administration’s reckless decision to withdraw the draft Wiltshire Local Plan, an act that will leave the county exposed to significantly higher housing targets and strip the council of its ability to properly control development. By abandoning the draft plan which was carefully prepared under previous national policy, the administration has thrown away Wiltshire’s chance to deliver more balanced, manageable housing growth in the years ahead.
Conservatives warn this decision risks unleashing a “planning free-for-all” under current national policy, handing the advantage directly to developers. Without an up-to-date plan, Wiltshire Council will be dangerously weakened, losing control over where development takes place while being forced to accept even higher, government-imposed housing numbers.
Serious concerns have also been raised about a lack of transparency in the decision-making process. Crucial legal advice was withheld from all but five councillors ahead of the vote, despite its importance and an urgent request from the floor of the chamber during the debate. Councillor Richard Clewer, Leader of the Conservative Group said after the meeting,
Councillors were effectively treated like children expected to sign off on a major strategic decision without being trusted with the full facts.
Cllr Clewer explained that the Lib Dem decision is even more indefensible given that, for a relatively modest additional investment of around £20,000, the council could have challenged the Planning Inspectors and continued through the examination process avoiding a damaging Local Plan “void.” Other authorities in similar situations are taking exactly that approach.
Cllr Clewer said,
Withdrawing the Local Plan at this stage is a reckless gamble that leaves Wiltshire wide open to a planning free-for-all. Our existing plan was carefully developed to deliver lower housing numbers in a controlled and sustainable way. By backing away now, the administration is effectively inviting higher targets and surrendering control over where development happens. That is a failure of this Liberal Democrat leadership, supported by Independent councillors, and not in the best interests of our communities.
We are also deeply concerned that councillors were denied access to key legal advice before being asked to make this decision. That is simply unacceptable. Transparency is not optional especially when the consequences will shape Wiltshire for decades.
After already investing around £2.2 million in the evidence base, it is extraordinary that the administration has chosen to abandon the process when a relatively small additional sum could have kept the plan alive; this is the approach other councils across the country are taking. This is the wrong decision, taken at the wrong time, and Wiltshire will pay the price.
Wiltshire Conservatives are demanding urgent clarity from the Liberal Democrat administration on how it plans to deal with the housing pressures it has now exacerbated and how it intends to ensure that local communities are not sidelined in future planning decisions.
