ARE THE PROPOSALS DESIRABLE, AND WHETHER AND HOW THEY CAN BE ACHIEVED

  The scale of housing and the broad distribution between regions and sub regions must be determined through the preparation of Regional Planning Guidance. It is essential that there is full consultation and testing in public of any proposals for growth. This is the only acceptable way of determining if the proposals are desirable. It is not practical to achieve any significant increase in the rate of housing completions in the short term by proposing additional development in development plans. This is because of the reliance on house builders to implement proposals, and their programme is determined by market and capacity factors, and the need for enabling public infrastructure.

  In Uttlesford, developers have very substantial land banks, particularly bearing in mind its significant rural and historic character. In some cases this is land with planning permission for development on greenfield sites as urban extensions. In other cases, it is land identified in adopted local plans, again mainly greenfield sites. Some of this land is phased to enable major new road building to be completed. Although now under construction, this major road building has been subject to successive delays as Government funding has either not been available or Government has been reviewing its road building policy. The release of land was also phased to relate to employment growth of Stansted Airport up to 15mppa. The Airport is already at this level and significant housing remains undeveloped.

THE OVERALL SCALE OF HOUSE BUILDING

  It is not clear what the DPM meant in referring to 200,000 homes in the RPG9 "Growth Areas". He gave no indicative time scale, annual rate or explanation as to its basis. Any figure should be determined through the RPG process, considering what might be feasible in a sub region taking into account social, economic and environmental factors, in the context of the need to achieve an overall increase in the country's housing stock.

ARE THE PROPOSALS LIKELY TO SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE HOUSE PRICES?

  No. New house building can only have a marginal impact, given the numbers of homes involved as a result of any increase in the rate of building compared to the existing stock and underlying rate of development. There are much more significant macro economic factors governing house prices than land available in the planning system, such as the money available in people's pockets and the lending policies of banks and building societies. Given its geographical location Uttlesford will remain a high cost housing area.

SUB REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION

  The distribution, like the overall scale, should be determined through RPG. The differences between the "growth areas" should not be overlooked. The London Stansted Cambridge corridor was not identified as a growth area in RPG9, but as an area to be studied to determine its potential to accommodate growth. The study has not concluded whether it should be a growth area—that was not its purpose. It has looked at the potential effects of three different scales of economic growth in four different spatial patterns. It should be RPG14 for the East of England that determines the appropriate level of growth for which to provide and the pattern of development.

  The Council is very concerned at the apparent lack of co-ordination between decisions on airport policy, strategic transport investment and housing growth areas. It is still considering the SERAS consultation in terms of the significant level of urbanisation needed to support any further runway development at Stansted Airport. It is however, already clear that such a level of growth is completely incompatible with the existing character of the area, which is comprised entirely of countryside, populated only with small towns and historic villages, apart from the airport site itself.

THE POTENTIAL FOR HIGH QUALITY SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES

  Location and settlement form will be an important factor. Government planning policies and development plans cannot, though, control who occupies new homes and where they work. Long distance commuting is an inevitable consequence of housing development outside London in any accessible part of the South East/ East of England.

MILLENNIUM VILLAGES

  Uttlesford is a very rural area of small country towns and historic villages. It is understood that the Millennium Village concept relates to regeneration proposals.

HOUSING FOR SALE/SOCIAL HOUSING MIX

  All new developments must be mixed and balanced communities without any predominance of one form of tenure in any particular locality. Social housing must be fully integrated into communities. The tenure options should include equity loan assisted purchase schemes through an RSL, shared ownership through an RSL as well as social rented accommodation. Social housing can essentially be only achieved through the planning system as a result of negotiation with applicants. This will become more difficult for Uttlesford if the Government's current proposals to take away 75% of new receipts from Right to Buy sales comes about from April 2004. Unless replaced by another form of funding there will be an adverse effect on new social housing in Uttlesford.

CENTRAL/LOCAL GOVERNMENT DECISION

  If the RPG route is used, as the Council strongly advocates, the respective roles are already clear. Local Government has to have sufficient influence to be able to ensure that decisions are appropriate in the local context. To do otherwise risks undermining the proper process and the public's confidence in the democratic process. Government has an essential role in ensuring the timely and appropriate provision of infrastructure and resources to ensure any new development is both sustainable and of a quality that our country can be proud for future generations.