SOUTH West Surrey MP Jeremy Hunt has called for local people to be given greater say over where new homes are built, after Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced a new target for providing extra homes. Waverley Borough Council could be forced to build an extra 46 new homes per year on top of the average 230 it already has to provide annually, Mr Hunt claimed this week. Gordon Brown has revealed that the annual target for new homes in England would be raised from 200,000 to 240,000 from 2016 – a decision that could have a major impact on the towns and villages of South West Surrey. The South East Plan already requires Waverley to build 4,600 new homes between 2006 and 2026 and Gordon Brown's new target could mean an extra 460 on top of that requirement from 2016 onwards. Jeremy Hunt said he has always supported measures to build more homes on genuine brownfield land, but maintains that necessary infrastructure (like schools, hospitals, roads, public transport, water supplies) is essential, and environmental protection like the Green Belt must be kept. He has also criticised hikes to stamp duty under Labour and cuts to the rights of social tenants to buy their home. Across the South East, the average first time buyer pays £1,901 more stamp duty under Labour, while the average home buyer pays £6,940 more. "We do need more homes in South West Surrey – as long as we continue to protect the environment and provide the necessary infrastructure. "But it's local people who should decide where new homes should go, rather than the Planning Inspectorate in Bristol or Whitehall bureaucrats," said the MP. "The government's top-down approach of forcing high density blocks of flats, closing local hospitals and recklessly building on flood plains threatens to create unsustainable communities that will threaten the character of our area. "Yet tax hikes, especially punitive stamp duty and escalating council tax, have helped kick a whole generation off the housing ladder. "South West Surrey needs to be able to provide housing for young people and key workers, but in a way that protects the special charm of our area and it is vital that local people have a strong voice in influencing planning decisions that affect them."
