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Greens support Tong Valley campaign as thousands of objections to local plan submitted

Today, the Green Party will be supporting residents at Bradford City Hall objecting to Tong Valley being allocated for 2,000 new houses.

Resident’s from Tong & Fulneck Valley Association will be handing in their comments on Bradford Council’s Core Strategy calling for Tong Valley to be removed from list of sites earmarked for housing.

Matt Edwards, a campaigner for the Green Party in Tong Ward has said: "The people living near the Tong Valley have today sent a clear message to Bradford Council. They will not sit back and let the valley be earmarked for housing.

“Thanks to a motion put forward by the Green Party earlier this year, Bradford Council has declared a Climate Emergency acknowledging the urgency for action.

“However, there is no way of building houses in the Tong Valley without building the new link road which will lead to increased emissions and the loss of trees. This means that the Council is knowingly putting forward a large site for development which directly contravenes their commitments to tackle climate change.

"With this in mind, the Green Party group on Bradford Council and I urge planners to go back to the drawing board and find new ways of using existing brownfield sites to meet their housing targets without damaging the environment.”

Last year, the co-leader of the Green Party hit out at the total number of homes proposed for building on the Green Belt which hit 460,000.

Jonathan Bartley said:

"Developers are carving up our countryside to build homes normal families can’t afford to live in – and the Government is letting them get away with it.

“Building on the Green Belt will never solve the housing crisis and it’s time Ministers gave this land the stronger protection it needs.”