Getting back to grass roots
The Orchards, Rastrick
AS both a Councillor and Parliamentary Candidate, planning applications are definitely in the top three issues raised with me.
It wasn't until I became a councillor that I realised just how little influence local opinion counted in the decision making process, as Planning Committee and council officers have little or no local discretion and must abide by national Government planning policy.
It is for these very reasons I wholly support Conservative proposals to open up democracy and neighbourhood involvement, while at the same time scrapping Whitehall targets and unelected quangos. Examples of our proposals include:
- Allowing Local Communities to create "bottom up" plans to shape and protect the character of their neighbourhoods.
- Abolish undemocratic and ineffective tiers of regional planning overseen by unelected regional agencies.
- Maintain National Green Belt Protection and other special protections for wildlife.
- Abolish Labour's new unelected and unaccountable central planning quango.
- Change Labour's restrictive parking rules to allow more parking spaces in family homes and near local shops.
These proposals give real and tangible measures to move democracy and decision making for fundamental planning issues from the "We know best" central Government control to grass-roots decision making – change we surely must all welcome?
CRAIG WHITTAKER
Conservative Parliamentary candidate
Calder Valley
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Halifax
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 7 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North east
