Red Squirrel. England's last urban population is under threat. Image © S.N.W. 2018
"Last month we wrote to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Sajid Javid, asking him to call in the planning application for 1,200 houses adjacent to Havannah Nature Reserve.
We are still awaiting a response.
In the meantime, we are urging people to contact the Secretary of State, requesting he calls in the application for his own determination.
We have put together a template letter (below), which can be sent to sajid.javid@communities.gsi.gov.uk with an open copy to npcu@communities.gsi.gov.uk
Please add your own words and remember to include your name.
The more we highlight the illegalities of the proposals to central government, the greater the likelihood of getting the plans overturned.
It is important to act quickly, as the application is due to be considered by Newcastle City Council on Friday 12th January."
________________________________________________________
Dear Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP,
Re: Newcastle City Council – Planning Application 2017/0666/01/OUT Newcastle Great Park
I am writing to you in your capacity as Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to request call-in of the above major planning application, which conflicts with national policy on Green Belts, as set out in Section 9 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
Section 38 (6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act (2004) requires planning applications to be determined in accordance with the local development plan, unless material considerations indicate otherwise.
This application contravenes Newcastle and Gateshead Core Strategy and Urban Core Plan and the Master Plan for development in Newcastle Great Park. There are no material considerations to outweigh the development plan allocation and the clear harm caused by the proposals. Furthermore, there are no very special circumstances to justify inappropriate development in the Green Belt, and the proposals would result in substantial harm to the Green Belt and biodiversity.
Newcastle City Council has also misinterpreted Paragraph 74 of the NPPF and the extant development plan policy for open space protection. Such misinterpretation of local and national policy could set a dangerous precedent for the inappropriate change of use of parkland elsewhere, which would prohibit public access to the detriment of local communities.
I therefore request you call in this application for your own determination.
Yours sincerely,
{INSERT NAME}
Anton Deque adds:
This won't do more than let the world know there were objections. Jarvid will nod this through – though there may just be a few more sops to the 'conservationists'. I am deeply cynical about attempting to use legislation drawn up with developers in mind to head off concrete. But as someone said to me long ago, 'It keeps them out of the pub' at least for an hour or two.
DO copy and paste this text adding your own words as you wish (but stay polite please!), then sign and send an e-mail to sajid.javid@communities.gsi.gov.uk if you can.
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