Nigel today asked the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon David Cameron MP, to reassure his constituents that Ribble Valley Borough Council’s core strategy, once approved, would protect the Ribble Valley from over development.
The exchange took place at Prime Minister’s Questions:
Mr Nigel Evans (Ribble Valley) (Con):
Ribble Valley council has recently approved its core strategy. Will the Prime Minister reassure local councillors that that will give them extra power to protect those areas within the Ribble Valley that are not already earmarked for development? Will he come and visit the Ribble Valley and see for himself why it is consistently voted one of the best places to live in the United Kingdom, and why local people want to keep it that way?
The Prime Minister:
I look forward to visiting my hon. Friend’s constituency and constituencies in Lancashire more broadly. The assurance I can give him is this: when local councils put in place their local plan, they will have far greater ability to determine how much housing and what sort of housing they have, and where it goes. That is what we are trying to put in place. The faster local councils can put in their local plans, the more power and responsibility they will have.
Speaking after leaving the Chamber, Mr Evans said:
“I think that it is important that the Prime Minister sees why residents are so opposed to the mass development that we are seeing in the beautiful Ribble Valley. We will look to set a date as soon as possible.”