Minister urges council bosses to 'strain every sinew' to preserve green belt
A senior minister has hit back at claims that sky high government housing targets are forcing councils into green belt development.
Council leaders in the four Black Country boroughs say there is no way they can meet a target of 76,000 homes by 2039 without digging up the green belt.
They have come under fire after signing off the draft Black Country Plan, which proposes that swathes of the green belt are carved up for more than 7,000 homes and nearly 50 acres of employment space.
Now Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick has called on council chiefs to "strain every sinew" to protect green sites, insisting there was plenty of scope across the region for brownfield development.
It comes after the council leaders demanded meetings with ministers over the homes target, which Dudley Council leader Patrick Harley said currently left a choice between a "housing shortfall or building on the green belt".
Asked if the Government was demanding too many homes from the councils, Mr Jenrick said: "No. We need to build more homes as we've got to help young people and those on low incomes onto the housing ladder.
"This year we are seeing housing prices rising sharply so it's more important than ever that we try to build those homes.
"I firmly believe there are still opportunities in the Black Country to be building on brownfield land and in town centres and on high streets.
"We will do everything we can to support this area to do that, and have already invested in the brownfield fund and we're backing the brownfield institute."
Mr Jenrick added: "My advice to local councils would be to make sure that you are maximising out the brownfield opportunities before you even think about the green belt.
"Our national policy is that you should not be building on the green belt except in the most exceptional circumstances.
"One of the things I have always liked about this area is how quickly you can get from places like Wolverhampton and Dudley into the beautiful countryside.
"It is important to strain every sinew to protect it."
He added that as the region comes out of the pandemic there would be opportunities for offices to be converted into housing.
The publication of the draft Black Country Plan sparked a wave of campaigns to save green belt sites across the region, including the Grapes Pool field in Bilston.
In Wolverhampton, opposition Tory councillors are set to next week table a motion urging the Labour-led authority to scrap plans for green belt development.
Tettenhall Wightwick councillor Ellis Turrell said: "No green belt land should be released by this council for housing while empty and decaying buildings are left to rot."
West Midlands Mayor Andy Street has launched an independent review in a bid to highlight industrial sites available for housing.
