01/05/13…..Thame Neighbourhood Plan -a ‘non’ choice?
DEAR Editor, I send this as I believe that the ?advertisement? by David Bretherton and Mike Welply in last week?s Thame Gazette is in part an indirect response to my letter to Barry Yates (published on your website) of 15th April ? my letter and the points in it certainly received no direct response. It therefore feels appropriate to make the following comments –
– the points and arguments that are being made by sceptics/opponents of the plan were made at every point in the process-from the beginning in the sessions with Tibbalds and at every subsequent stage including the rounds of written submissions [look at the evidence base]
– the process-via the core group structure – was exclusive from the beginning. That is it excluded any opinion that was not in concordance with the ?consensus? view emanating from the core group [again look at the evidence base]
– in the advertisement we are being presented with a very negative choice-a non choice between accepting 775 houses-or (so we are told) even more if we say no to the former. So ?confirming? that under present political arrangements we will either have too much or much too much development. The Neighbourhood Plan is being presented as making the best of things in the circumstances-I would contend that even on that basis it fails-certainly for the south/south east of town.
-a fundamental problem is that 775 houses is too much-we have been asked to participate in this exercise in ?localism? when the core element is prescribed from above and completely non negotiable. No area of town wants this much development. I would note here that John Prescott has been out of Government for over 3 years ? more than enough time for the present government to change things had they wanted to. Instead they have changed the planning system to make it a lot easier for developers.
– finally I would ask what position our District Councillors took during the process that generated the SODC Core Strategy – did they vote for or against, including the housing allocations for Thame?
Yours sincerely
David Phillips
Thame
