Bradley has presented his Parliamentary petition to save Bromsgrove and the Villages’ greenbelt in the House of Commons.
Back in July, the local MP launched his Parliamentary petition in the wake of the Government increasing the constituency’s housing target by 85%.
The petition demands that the Government justifies the ‘flawed’ formula used to calculate the 85% increase in Bromsgrove and the Villages’ housing target to rebalance the housing target so that Birmingham takes its fair share.
It also demands that the 85% increase is reversed, in addition to the reversal of the reduction in Birmingham’s housing target to ensure the burden is shared in a fair and proportionate way and only allow new houses to be built when the accompanying infrastructure is provided.
Bromsgrove District is 89% greenbelt and 79% rural, but the Government has made the decision to reduce Birmingham’s target by 31% - despite the city having at least 140 hectares of brownfield land that could be built on.
Since last year, Bradley has been fighting to protect the greenbelt. He responded to the Government’s consultation and highlighted the ‘flawed’ formula used which resulted in an 85% increase in Bromsgrove’s target.
In the House of Commons, the local MP has also challenged the Government a number of times to justify the decision they’ve made using a ‘flawed’ formula to calculate the housing target figure for Bromsgrove and the Villages.
Last Tuesday (November 25th), Bradley presented his Parliamentary petition, signed by more than 5,900 people, on the floor of the House of Commons.
Following the presentation of the petition, the text of the petition is sent to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as it is the Government department responsible for the subject matter of the petition. The department must then respond within two months.
Bradley said:
“It’s over to the Housing Secretary and his department now.
“More than 5,800 people have made their voices loud and clear that they do not want our precious greenbelt bulldozed over in the name of a flawed housing figure.
“We want the 85% increase in our housing target reversed. We want the reduction in Birmingham’s target reversed, and we want the Government to build on brownfield first and, where houses are built, provide communities with the infrastructure they need before any houses are built. It’s just common-sense – but it’s something this Government is clearly lacking.
“Whatever the outcome is, the fight to save our greenbelt goes on and I will continue to hold the Government to account for the deliberate choices they have made.”
