Sadiq Khan and Angela Rayner ‘plotting to concrete over London’s green belt’ in act of ‘environmental vandalism’
Sadiq Khan will announce a scheme to “actively explore” concreting over swathes of London’s green belt to build tens of thousands of new homes.
The Mayor of London, in plans described by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner as a “bold proposal”, will push to try and meet a new target of 88,000 homes every year – with protected green spaces set to be concreted over to do so.
He is now set to go further than the Government’s policy of building more on low-quality parts of the greenbelt – the so-called “grey belt”.
Those are the same areas around the edge of the capital which have been hit by his rollout of Ulez, the controversial clean-air scheme which slaps motorists in “non-compliant” vehicles with daily charges.
London’s green belt – which includes parts of outer London boroughs, well inside the M25, and includes large areas of Hertfordshire, Essex, Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire
LONDON GREEN BELT COUNCIL
“The status quo is wrong, out-of-date and simply unsustainable,” the Mayor will say in a speech on Friday. “We have to be honest with Londoners that this alone will not be enough to meet our needs.
“The perception many people have is that the green belt is all beautiful countryside, green and pleasant land, rich with wildlife.
“The reality is very different. The green belt can often be low-quality land, poorly maintained and rarely enjoyed by Londoners. Only around 13 per cent is made up of parks and areas that the public can access.”
Under his proposals, planners will look to release “some” green belt land for building, with conditions on affordable housing, energy efficiency, transport links and promoting access to green spaces.
But the plot has drawn fury from inside City Hall – its Tory chief Susan Hall said: “Once again, Sadiq Khan has shown his true colours by dancing to the tune the Labour Government sets.
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The Mayor’s plans have been described by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner as a ‘bold proposal’
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“This is a Mayor who will sacrifice London’s precious green spaces to appease his Labour paymasters.
“Londoners elected him on a promise to protect our environment, but it’s now clear those promises weren’t worth the recycled paper they were printed on.”
A Conservative statement called the plans “environmental vandalism” – while a Tory source told GB News the Mayor’s plans were a bid to “concrete over” swathes of the green belt.
The Tories have also accused him of U-turning on his own prior comments – Khan had argued in the past against releasing green belt land while there are still previously developed brownfield sites available.
While Andrew Boff, the City Hall Tories’ planning spokesman, added: “The Mayor has repeatedly stood in the London Assembly chamber and given categorical assurances that he would protect London’s greenbelt.
Khan’s promises ‘weren’t worth the recycled paper they were printed on’, Susan Hall blasted
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“This announcement is a complete betrayal of those promises and shows utter contempt for Londoners who treasure these vital green spaces.
“When Khan says only 13 per cent of the green belt is parks and public areas, he must be asked – is he looking to axe the remaining 87 per cent?
“Londoners want, and need, homes that they can afford to live in and which are high quality. The Mayor has the land, and has had the money, to do this.
“If he wants to stand up and say that London has a housing crisis, he might want to ask himself why he let it get that bad considering the Conservatives gave him £9billion to fix it.”