I was interested to see Labour councillor Asif Khan has decided to take an interest in housing and planning policy.

The more so as he suggests he has found the secret of meeting the Government’s targets of 800 new homes a year in Watford without having to build upwards!

What a shame that he hasn’t deigned to turn up and share his magic solution at any of the regular meetings where we have discussed housing options as part of Watford’s local plan preparation.

Nor have his Labour colleagues put forward any alternatives for meeting the Government’s targets (which we are currently failing) within Watford’s eight square miles.

In the absence of other evidence, I suspect his plans for building without going upwards are a fantasy – castles in the air and hobbit holes perhaps.

In reality, Labour councils in urban areas are facing the same dilemmas and taking a similar approach as Watford about building heights and locations. We even had a study tour of a nearby Labour-run council to learn from their experience about taller buildings – but no Watford Labour councillor could be bothered to come.

All urban authorities are having to deal with a national policy that loads the burden of new development on existing towns and cities and all are finding this challenging and controversial.

Councils of all parties are joining forces to oppose the government’s housing targets and undermining of the planning system. It is a pity that Cllr Khan and his Watford Labour colleagues seem so keen to let the Government off the hook, implying instead that they have some magic (but always unspecified) solution to meeting increased housing targets.

Cllr Iain Sharpe

Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Development

Watford Borough Council