The Alliance of Green, Independent and Liberal Democrat groups leading Stroud District Council have successfully blocked a damaging Investment Zone proposal for the district – despite the Conservative-led Gloucestershire County Council trying to force it through.
The Alliance leaders felt they couldn’t support an Investment Zone bid for the Gloucestershire Science & Technology Park in Berkeley, as the reduction in planning controls and environmental protections, which appears to be a condition of any Investment Zone, brings too many risks for the community and local environment.
The County Council was required to respect the decision of Stroud District, as the Local Planning Authority, but on Friday announced that they strongly disagreed and would be putting the project forward to Government anyway.
The Government Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities has since confirmed to Stroud that the rules the Department set out for local authorities in England to submit an Investment Zone expression of interest, do still apply for Gloucestershire. This means that any bid for the local area without the consent of Stroud District Council will fail.
Cllr Catherine Braun, Leader of Stroud District Council, said: “We are very pleased to get confirmation that the Investment Zone proposal has been scuppered, despite the Conservative County Council trying to force it through.”
Explaining why the Alliance refused to support an expression of interest, she said: “We have a vision for a fairer, greener Stroud District. This involves standing up for our communities and for nature.
“We welcome high-quality development, in line with our net zero commitments, which meets the needs of our residents and businesses. However, we said ‘no’ to the Investment Zone proposal, as it would mean loss of local control over the planning process, with developers being able to ride roughshod over important environmental protections and the views of our local communities.
“With nature in the UK under huge pressure, this is not the moment to tear up vital legal protection. Earlier this year, the independent environment watchdog said that even existing laws are failing to slow the damage to land, air and water in our country.
“We stand with the National Trust and conservation organisations like the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trusts in condemning the attack on nature, which is part of the Truss Government’s plan for Investment Zones. It is also shocking to see that the legal requirement to achieve net zero by 2050 has been completely overlooked in this policy.”
Cllr Natalie Bennett, Deputy Leader, agreed that an Investment Zone would have an adverse impact on the local area, particularly on valued local businesses. “The experience of previous Enterprise Zones is that they are mainly taken up by large-scale, footloose businesses who benefit from the tax incentives, and then move on,” she said. “This is not the vision we have for our local economy. We all remain strongly committed to supporting development at the Science & Technology Park in Berkeley, that is in line with our Local Plan.”
Cllr Doina Cornell, Leader of the Community Independents Group, added:
“From the start we were concerned with the focus on ‘economic growth at any cost’ and the indications that Investment Zones would not be required to provide affordable housing or fund key infrastructure. We also raised concerns at the way the entire Investment Zone policy was being managed. There has been no consultation with the local community, and as District Leaders we were given only 24 hours to consider an outline expression of interest. A high-speed bidding process, with quick announcement of ‘winners’ to boost a rapidly collapsing Tory Government, is no way to distribute public finances or to advance economic development.”
Cllr Ken Tucker, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group said:
“We were assured by the Secretary of State, Simon Clarke, that local consent was critical, and that he would be ‘requiring confirmation that the Local Planning Authority supports any proposal for an Investment Zone as part of the Expression of Interest process’, to make sure any proposal is right for that area.
“We were therefore both shocked and appalled that Mark Hawthorne, Conservative Leader of Gloucestershire County Council, chose to ignore the wishes of elected leaders in Stroud District, as well as in Cheltenham, in an attempt to circumvent the rules. It looked like a last, desperate attempt to prop up a failing Prime Minister at the expense of our precious environment and local democracy, and we are all delighted that we have succeeded in blocking it.”
ENDS
Information on the Investment Zone concept can be seen here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/investment-zones-in-england/investment-zones-in-england
Stroud District Council’s response can be seen here:
Gloucestershire County Council statement:
National Trust statement
Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust statement
https://www.gloucestershirewildlifetrust.co.uk/blog/roger-mortlock-cheif-executive/attack-nature
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