No decision has yet been taken over new homes plans

THERE are times when even we are surprised by the capacity of the Lib Dems to bend the truth, use scare tactics and blatantly twist the facts for what they consider to be political gain.

Following recent public statements and emails from a Lib Dem councillor please let me set the record straight.

Are plans which ‘jam thousands of new houses onto local greenbelt’ going ahead?

NO - absolutely no decisions have been taken and residents are still being consulted (something the Lib Dems wanted to stop). There will be further consultations next year.

The Greater Manchester Spatial Framework (GMSF) plan will probably change or possibly be abandoned altogether if councillors are unwilling to accept the final version.

But right now it is crucial that we all engage in a constructive dialogue about the best ways to both meet development need and minimise greenbelt incursion - and that’s what the consultation is all about.

Were the GMSF plans ‘pushed through’ council last week?

NO - what the council did agree was to start the process for its own local plan for Stockport.

The Lib Dems voted against having such a local plan which would result in the council having no defence against free for-all-development.

This would leave the greenbelt with no protection whatsoever. The local plan report that was before council specifically states, ‘the purpose of this report is not to consider the agreement of emerging GMSF figures or any proposed allocations as this is a wholly separate process.’

The council has to produce an updated local plan that’s about Stockport and its future development needs regardless of what happens to the GMSF.

It is irresponsible in the extreme that the Lib Dems are not prepared to support this. Councillor Philip Harding Chair of the planning and highways committee

Our roads are being resurfaced which means the road humps will be removed and then replaced.

A query to the council suggesting that the decision on replacing road humps should be deferred resulted in the reply that the road humps would be replaced, and if I wanted them removed then I would have to get up a petition to get more than 51 per cent of residents in favour of their removal.

The humps could then be removed at further cost and the legal requirements could take up to 12 months to complete.

Why did no one on the council consider this before the decision was made to resurface our roads, and how much more of our council tax funds will be wasted due to a lack of forethought by this council? Name and address supplied fingers.

Some people are blind while others can’t read or write. There are lots of reasons why people some can’t do things online and it’s time these people were given consideration and not just left as part of a forgotten society.

To expect these people to do everything online is prejudice, and means they are missing out as well as being unable to get help when they need it and get things they are entitled to. Sara Moor Shaw Heath