44,170 homes to be built on green belt across West Midlands
Green belt land in the West Midlands is under attack according to campaigners, after it was revealed that another 44,170 homes are set to be built in the region.
The latest figures from the Campaign to Protect Rural England show an increase of 22 per cent on last year in picturesque parts of the Midlands.
Nationally, the number of new houses set to be built on England's green belt has risen to more than a quarter of a million.
Councils have been accused of exploiting a loophole that allows them to approve building on the green belt in 'exceptional circumstances' if the decision boosts economic growth.
Paul Miner, the CPRE's planning campaign manager, said: "Our green belt is invaluable in preventing urban sprawl and providing the countryside next door for 30 million people.
"We need stronger protection for the green belt, not just supportive words and empty promises.
"To build the affordable homes young people and families need, the Government should empower councils to prioritise the use of brownfield sites.
"Brownfield land is a self-renewing resource that can provide at least one million new homes."
Only Oxfordshire has seen a fall in the number of homes planned in the figures, down 22 per cent to 3,510, the new research showed. The north west is the worst-hit area, with an increase of 61 per cent on last year, while 117,028 new dwellings will be built in London on green belt land.
The CPRE claimed there were now almost double the number of homes outlined for the green belt than the 147,000 in Labour's 2009 regional plans.
Government claims that it wanted to protect the green belt are being undermined by the rising levels of buildings being planned, and some 274,792 homes are planned on protected areas of land around towns and cities. That's around 55,000 more than there were in March last year.
A Department for Communities and Local Government spokesman said: "There are no plans or policy to relax the strong protections that prevent inappropriate development on the green belt.
"Ministers have repeatedly been clear that demand for housing alone will not justify changing green belt boundaries. Councils are already expected to prioritise development on brownfield sites, with 90 per cent of brownfield sites expected to have planning permission by the end of this parliament.
"It means that in 2014-15 just 0.02 per cent of green belt was converted to residential use, and the green belt is actually 32,000 hectares bigger than it was in 1997."
