The local plan was passed at last nights full council meeting.
Cllr. Seb Lowe, the Council Leader said, “Mr Mayor, we face this evening one of the most important decisions that we as councillors could ever be asked to make. The decision we reach tonight will have far-reaching consequences for this borough - not just in the short term but for generations. And that is why I urge members to make the right decision, and to think very carefully about their reasons for doing so.”
“Tonight we will make a decision on whether to adopt the Local Plan for the Borough of Rugby. Many of the members here tonight, and the people we represent, have been very vocal in making their views on this topic known. It is no secret that there are many - both inside and outside of this chamber - who have grave concerns about whether we should adopt this plan. And I will address those concerns directly in a few moments. But before that, I would like to set out in very clear and direct terms exactly why this plan is to the benefit of the people of Rugby.”
“This Local Plan is the only means - I stress - THE ONLY means by which we as an authority can have any control over the development which takes place in Rugby. Without a local plan in place, we will not be able to demonstrate a five year land supply. This will mean that we will be obliged to - to use the regulatory term - “look favourably” on future speculative planning applications. Allow me to translate what this means Mr Mayor. It means that it will be open season for speculative developers in Rugby - we will see one refused planning application after another turned round on appeal. Appeal which will come at our cost. Put simply, putting the local plan in place will enable us to retain control of our own planning process. I am sure I need not impress upon members the consequences of losing this most fundamental safeguard of the rights and interests of the people we represent.”
“Secondly, I would like to speak about infrastructure. It is a common complaint of those opposed to the local plan that we do not have the infrastructure in place to support a growing population. Well. I agree. However I am afraid that people making this argument against the Local Plan have rather missed the point. The primary purpose of the local plan is to enable growth in our housing stock to be matched by an accompanying growth in infrastructure. By putting in place this local plan, we can not only plan and shape that infrastructure. We can also make the developers pay for it. I fear that many members who are opposed to this plan on these grounds have based their opposition on their experience of some speculative developments which we have been forced to allow in the past. Frankly, this is an entirely misplaced objection, since the primary purpose of this plan is to explicitly legislate against the very lack of infrastructure they have been complaining about.”
“Finally I would like to talk about housing. It is easy for many in this chamber who bought their own homes when property was cheap to forget that not everyone today is in quite so fortunate a position. It is a fact that there is a massive shortage of housing in this country - particularly affordable housing. To those members who would have us believe that their residents are opposed to building more homes, I ask whether they have taken the trouble to ask their younger constituents, many of whom will be struggling to get on the housing ladder. To be blunt, if you believe we should see the homes and infrastructure for the next generation built in Rugby, the only option is to vote for this Local Plan.”
“Having set out the case for the plan, I would now like to address the concerns of those who are opposed to this. In a few moments I have no doubt that certain members will stand up here in a few moments and tell us that by opposing this plan they will somehow be helping to halt the future development of this borough. Mr Mayor, this is fundamentally untrue, and is dangerously misleading. Whether we adopt this plan or not tonight - our housing targets will remain the same - there is literally nothing on earth we can do about them whether we want to or not.”
“So the choice before us is stark. Do we wish to see this volume of housing built in a sustainable and controlled way, on our terms, with the appropriate infrastructure at the developers cost... or whether, in name of false promises and political posturing we are irresponsible enough to reject this measure which would - and this is incontrovertible fact - lead to the same level of development taking place with no control, no infrastructure, on a piecemeal basis.”
“Mr Mayor, I am proud to propose this Local Plan tonight. Not because I believe it is perfect or exactly as I would have liked had I had the luxury of choice. But because the adoption of this plan is in the best interests of the people of this Borough. And I urge my fellow councillors to reach the same conclusion.”
For more details on the plan please see the councils full press release here: https://www.rugby.gov.uk/news/article/1503/major_milestone_as_borough_plan_is_adopted
