Victims of the council

I read your article dated 21 December 2023 'MP played a 'crucial role' in advancing local plan' with much scepticism as I have been in correspondence with Mrs Keegan since

2020 about concerns over speculative development on The Manhood Peninsula due to the failure of the then Conservative Council to deliver a Local Plan.

Last week residents of Birdham received a letter from Mrs Keegan suggesting that 'Birdham has sadly been the victim of long running delays to the submission of a new Local Plan by CDC' and that 'following the local elections in May 2023 we have seen no substantial progress on the Proposed Submission Local Plan…leaving room for developers to further exploit the situation'.

Can I please point out to Mrs Keegan and your readers that the Local

Plan was actively pushed back by Mrs Keegan with the Conservative led CDC Planning Department under Mrs S Taylor with the approval of

Luke Hall, Minister for

Local Government & Homelessness, in Oct 2019. The Local Plan should have been adopted in 2018, July 2020 at the very latest with the extension granted. The 30% of developable land in Chichester has been under threat of speculative development since 2018!

Furthermore, the planning application for

150 homes off Main Road Birdham (Ref.23/01497/ OUT) referred to in Mrs Keegan’s latest letter was submitted in June 2021 when the Conservatives still lead the council. The appeal was heard in September 2023 i.e. only four months after the local elections.

Residents in Birdham, Earnley, Bracklesham, East Wittering and The Harbour Villages are victims of the previous Conservative Council and our current MP’S inability to finalise a Local Plan within the published timeframes. Any attempt to push this onto the current CDC councillors is disingenuous at the very least!

The residents in all these areas now face unsustainable development on greenfield areas with high risks of flood and tidal inundation and where there is already a severe lack of sewage capacity causing potential damage to the environment, tourism, their homes and well being.

Mrs Keegan would do well to not to take her constituents south of the A27 for fools.