Local Plan Fiasco
By Alan Bacon
The Chiltern and South Bucks Local Plan has now sunk without trace. The formal inspection was postponed because of the lockdown, but in the meantime the inspectors suggested it should be withdrawn because it ignored the councils' duty to help meet Slough's housing needs.
The new Buckinghamshire Council is now starting to put together a plan for the whole of Bucks, so attention will turn to that, and the Chiltern and South Bucks Plan has been withdrawn. Arguments over the need for new houses and protecting the green belt and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty are set to continue. Lib Dem Councillor Peter Jones recently urged the Buckinghamshire Council Cabinet to pay attention to Chesham's Masterplan, which received large public support when it was unveiled three years ago but has since been largely ignored.