MPs to lobby government over new housing targets

North Yorkshire's housing target has increased to 4,144 a year

A group of MPs and council bosses from North Yorkshire are lobbying the government to lower its house building target for the county, after it more than doubled.

The new target of 4,144 new homes a year - up from 1,384 - would put unprecedented pressure on rural land in the county, the group has claimed.

Sir Alec Shelbrooke, Conservative MP for Wetherby and Easingwold, said there was "real concern house building will become a free-for-all".

A government spokesperson responded: "We have inherited the worst housing crisis in living memory and all areas of the country, including North Yorkshire, must play their part to deliver 1.5 million homes as part of our Plan for Change."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), senior councillors were worried the new target figure was unachievable, with the most homes previously built in the county being about 3,200 a year - and the average over the last five years being under 3,000.

Shelbrooke said: "Combined with the withdrawal of agreed timescales to merge our district local plans into one North Yorkshire local plan, halting the Selby local plan in its tracks, there is real concern among my constituents that house building will become a free-for-all and not a plan-led process.

"Together with my North Yorkshire MP colleagues, we have teamed up with the council's leadership to lobby government on this, asking for a review of their imposed housing targets."

He added: "We're committed to delivering the right homes in the right places, but this can only happen through a plan-led programme that includes adequate infrastructure in the region."

Sir Alec Shelbrooke is one of several MPs who have raised concerns

The new rules mean North Yorkshire Council is unable to demonstrate a five-year land supply for housing, which has sparked fears this might further tip the balance in favour of housing applications and schemes being approved when they otherwise might have been rejected.

Senior planners are worried developers may submit speculative applications in the hope they get approved due to the new target, with concerns this could lead to land banking by house builders, rather than plots being developed to ease the housing shortage.

Councillor Mark Crane, North Yorkshire Council's executive member for open to business, said a housing and economic needs assessment had been carried out which showed the county needed between 2,500 and 3,000 new homes a year.

"We feel the target of 4,144 properties is too high and not one we can achieve," he said.

"We are grateful to our MPs for making the case on our behalf."

Crane added that it was unclear if there were even enough "joiners and bricklayers" to build the number of homes required to hit the target.

The government spokesperson said: "Our revised housing targets have been set in line with the needs of local areas, so more homes will be built in the right places.

"But crucially we will ensure these are delivered alongside the necessary infrastructure and not at the expense of the environment."

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