While there is very little left to shock or outrage people in 2016, there was said to be a stunned atmosphere at a recent meeting of Stockport councillors. This came about with the chamber being pressured into a vote on the plans surrounding property developments in the greenbelt area of Stockport. Given that these plans are said to include over 12,000 homes, it is easy to see why people of all sides of the debate want to have their voices hears.
The council, which is predominantly run by Labour, was pressured into an immediate vote by councillors from the Liberal Democrats party. The vote was on an amendment which could have seen work halted on the plans for the Greater Manchester Combined Authorities (GMCA) work.
The chamber was questioned whether they had decided to consider a report on the work and this was when objections were raised. Councillor Mark Hunter led the way, speaking on behalf of residents who had objected to the plans who allowed work to be carried out on the green spaces of Stockport. It was Hunter who called for a vote. This then forced councillors to make a quick decision on the vote.
Lib Dems oppose this project
While the Lib Dems were hoping to halt proceedings, the Labour and Conservative councillors pulled together and managed to vote the amendment down. This ensured that there was no level of debate entered into about the amendment and that the work will go ahead as planned.
However, Councillor Hunter has already intimated that this is not the end of the matter and he will continue to push onwards in the hope of stopping this project and presumably others like it. The councillor is making calls for affordable property, suitable for families, to be created close to existing shops and public facilities as opposed to focusing on greenbelt areas. The fact that a high proportion of the land suggested for use by the GMSF is found within Stockport’s green belt areas has caused some concern for some of the local councillors.
Another councillor who opposed the project said that the process is solely focusing on finding places where it is cheap and easy to build as opposed to being where it is appropriate for families and future generations. There are of course other viewpoints on this but if work set to continue on this greenbelt area, there may not be much time for opposing viewpoints to be aired and debated.
At Spencer Harvey, we appreciate that providing more housing in the Stockport and Greater Manchester area isn’t just about volume, it has to be the right sort of housing. This is why we are keeping tabs on this story and the opposing sides of the debate.
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