Watford Borough Council has confirmed it will press on with plans for nearly 12,000 homes by 2037 despite the local MP’s claim it could appeal that Government-set figure.
The Local Plan’s housing target, set by a controversial algorithm, was voted through this month despite Dean Russell claiming it was “only a starting point” and the council was failing to challenge it within the plan.
Lib Dem mayor Peter Taylor branded that “highly misleading” and the borough council has since confirmed it will not retrospectively follow Mr Russell’s suggestion.
Ben Martin, the council’s head of planning and development, said housing targets can only be challenged in “very exceptional circumstances”, such as when there are high flood risks or large areas of high-quality Green Belt.
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“None of these criteria apply to Watford so it is almost impossible for us to challenge the figure through the Local Plan process,” he added.
He said a challenge would “almost certainly fail” and would leave the council without up-to-date policies – causing it to restart the planning process that has already taken seven years.
The Watford Observer asked Mr Russell to provide the section of legislation supporting his claim that the council could have challenged the housing figure within the plan.
He pointed to an official Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government statement on May 25, which said the targets are a “starting point for local councils to help them understand how much housing is needed in their area and are not legally binding”.
The Tory MP also said 19 per cent of land in Watford’s administrative area is designated as Green Belt, according to the plan, so it is unclear why the council doesn’t consider that to be a factor applicable to Watford.
“Given there has been very vocal criticism of Government targets, even if every part of the process has been followed correctly, it is unclear why the foreword of the Local Plan did not state these concerns in any official capacity to ensure they are on the record,” he added.
The Local Plan is currently going through final checks and is expected to be officially submitted to the Planning Inspectorate next week.
Examination hearings will then be arranged between August and December, where an inspector will assess whether it meets legal requirements and could potentially suggest modifications.
If accepted, it is expected to be adopted around February 2022.
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