Having asked the Government to clear up whether there was a change in Green Belt policy following comments by the Prime Minister, the Minister for Housing has replied and included a hand written note.
Councillor Margaret Cooksey, Cabinet Member for Planning, said: “I am grateful to have received a response from Chris Pincher MP, Minister for Housing, confirming what we have been doing – and the difficult decisions that have been made – remain in line with the government’s approach as set out in the National Planning Policy Framework. He was explicit that release of Green Belt as part of a Local Plan process should only occur in exceptional circumstances, when every other reasonable alternative has been explored.