THE debate over how many houses should be built in Basingstoke and Deane by 2039 continued to cause controversy last week.

Government calculations suggest as many as 17,820 new homes need to be built in Basingstoke and Deane by the end of 2039 and council documents reveal that Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council (BDBC) need to build 7,703 houses more than they currently have in the pipeline.

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It's part of the update process of a document called the local plan, which sets the rules surrounding the development of the borough and can be used by developers as a blueprint on where and how to build houses.

At a meeting of the borough council’s economic, planning and housing committee in September 2021, councillors unanimously voted in favour of rejecting the number of new homes, which is set under the government’s standard methodology procedure.

Since then a new number has not been decided on and on Thursday (March 3) councillors met again to continue to put together the local plan.

As previously reported the new leader of the council, Cllr Simon Bound said he hopes to take things in a new direction and told the Gazette his focus will be listening to what "residents value and want" and shaping the future of the borough ahead of the local plan update.

Cllr Chris Tomblin (Independent) said that despite this nothing has been done.

He said: “We should delay and prepare the numbers before we agree on this local plan draft.

“Our cabinet is trying to kick back about numbers, but we all seem to be carrying on. At the full council the new leader stated a change in approach, and he is pushing for a five-year land supply with no mention of housing numbers.

“Communities across our borough do not want 18,000 houses and they do not want to be capital of the south.”

Cllr Ian Tilbury (Independent) shared similar views.

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He added: “I listened to our dear leader on Monday night and he kept talking about a 5-year land supply but he doesn’t seem to understand how they actually work.

“We are building houses for the wider regional South East and other areas and it's gone through three local plans and we never win.”

Cllr Follett Maitland, also a member of the independent group said that she hopes things will change.

She said: “We heard at this week’s council meeting assurance by the new leader to do the right thing by the people of the borough and I hope this is more than a pre-election hollow words. Why only now is the concept of residents suddenly being spoken about.”

The local plan will be taken to consultation later this year and the debate continues.

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