Funding withdrawn for Hoo Peninsula housing infrastructure plans

Medway Council wants to turn the village of Hoo St Werburgh into a green town by 2055

The government has pulled £170m of support for new roads, sustainable transport and environmental improvements on the Hoo Peninsula.

Medway Council said it had submitted "realistic" plans for the infrastructure needed for new housing.

However, the Department for Levelling Up said the projects were not deliverable and withdrew the Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) support.

The council said the decision had "implications" for residents of Medway.

Medway Council leader Vince Maple said: "The loss of HIF today means we cannot fund and deliver the long needed all-important roads, public transport and environmental improvements ahead of new homes being built on the Hoo Peninsula."

As part of the government's national housing targets, Medway Council has to deliver 1,667 new homes a year between now and 2040 - a total of nearly 28,500.

The council previously announced plans to build houses expanding the village of Hoo St Werburgh.

"This decision has implications for Medway residents on the peninsula and across the whole of Medway. It risks undermining our commitment to delivering a local plan by 2025 and building new homes in the right places," Mr Maple said.

He added the council was "pressing" for a meeting with the secretary of state, Michael Gove.

Kelly Tolhurst, the Conservative MP for Rochester and Strood, has welcomed the withdrawal of the funding.

She said the plans would "legitimise the destruction of the Hoo Peninsula by pursuing the ambition of large-scale house building."

The Department of Levelling Up said it had worked with Medway Council to try and progress the Hoo St Werburgh scheme, but "ultimately concluded that the scheme is not deliverable within the budget and timeframe of the Housing Infrastructure Fund".

A spokesman said it would continue to work with the council to explore other housing options in the area.

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