BASE HEADER

Ref: Old Milverton Lane Development.
The draft local plan does not meet the criteria of "Exceptional circumstances" required to develop this Green Belt land.
The argument that the only land available is in Old Milverton is incorrect. The additional housing required to assist Coventry meeting their targets should be located closer to Coventry. The distance for commuters would increase pollution.
Sufficient land is available at a reasonable rate on the environs of Coventry that can be used without affecting the Green Belt of Old Milverton.
Therefore the Exceptional Circumstances requirements have not been met. The Local Plan significantly underestimates the capacity of land adjacent to Coventry to deliver Coventry's housing needed and therefore the development in Old Milverton is not required.
In a similar case in Cheltenham and Gloucester the Planning Inspector ruled that when releasing land from the Green Belt the "Green value" of the land should be rated and the least Green rated be removed first.
WDC and Coventry City Council have assessed the sites on the edge of Coventry and agreed that they are of a lower Green Belt Value.
Therefore the lower green belt value land should be released for the Local Plan and not Old Milverton land in North Leamington.

The Green Belt has been very effective in preventing Leamington joining with Kenilworth and Warwick. It thus does the job it was designed to do and assist in preventing the area from Wolverhampton to Leamington becoming one metropolis.

The WDC has complied with the duty to work with other local councils (Coventry City). In doing so it has not reacted the information that is included in the Coventry City Local Plan. Cooperating councils should provide housing land close to Coventry. Old Milverton is not close enough to Coventry to support the additional housing needs.