HAVING limbered up for a full-scale row about planning, with pledges when in Opposition to 'bulldoze' the planning system and reduce people's right to object to new development, the draft National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) issued by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner at the end of July was cleverly positioned. There were fewer amendments to current policy than expected, important words such as 'beauty' were reduced, but not eviscerated, a 'brownfield-first' commitment stands (albeit -crucially without a target) and it retains the commitment to a plan-led system.
However, on closer inspection, it's a wolf in sheep's clothing. In a handful of subtle, but devastating amendments, the planning system is to be focused on delivering a constant five-year supply of land for housing, with generous buffers and a new methodology designed to lift numbers. Anywhere such a supply does not exist will have development imposed on it. Previously developed areas of the green belt can be deemed 'grey' and the 'exceptional' reasons that can justify their release will include house building.
Denne historien er fra September 04, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra September 04, 2024-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Tales as old as time
By appointing writers-in-residence to landscape locations, the National Trust is hoping to spark in us a new engagement with our ancient surroundings, finds Richard Smyth
Do the active farmer test
Farming is a profession, not a lifestyle choice’ and, therefore, the Budget is unfair
Night Thoughts by Howard Hodgkin
Charlotte Mullins comments on Moght Thoughts
SOS: save our wild salmon
Jane Wheatley examines the dire situation facing the king of fish
Into the deep
Beneath the crystal-clear, alien world of water lie the great piscean survivors of the Ice Age. The Lake District is a fish-spotter's paradise, reports John Lewis-Stempel
It's alive!
Living, burping and bubbling fermented masses of flour, yeast and water that spawn countless loaves—Emma Hughes charts the rise and rise) of sourdough starters
There's orange gold in them thar fields
A kitchen staple that is easily taken for granted, the carrot is actually an incredibly tricky customer to cultivate that could reduce a grown man to tears, says Sarah Todd
True blues
I HAVE been planting English bluebells. They grow in their millions in the beechwoods that surround us—but not in our own garden. They are, however, a protected species. The law is clear and uncompromising: ‘It is illegal to dig up bluebells or their bulbs from the wild, or to trade or sell wild bluebell bulbs and seeds.’ I have, therefore, had to buy them from a respectable bulb-merchant.
Oh so hip
Stay the hand that itches to deadhead spent roses and you can enjoy their glittering fruits instead, writes John Hoyland
A best kept secret
Oft-forgotten Rutland, England's smallest county, is a 'Notswold' haven deserving of more attention, finds Nicola Venning
