He says that he wants to build the new housing on his land "*for Lewes people*" and "*mainly for people who work in and around the town of Lewes*". In reality there is no way to enforce delivery of this promise once planning permission is given. Builders of market housing do not ask potential buyers where they work. They sell to whoever has the money and is willing to buy. The allocation of the "affordable" housing that all greenfield developers are required to provide is a matter for the District Council, not the developer. Lewes housing goes to residents elsewhere in the District if they have greater housing need (and vice-versa).
Mr Moore's piece of downland has already been submitted to the District Council as a potential new housing site. Unfortunately, from his perspective, it was red-rated because of its landscape impact. He now has another opportunity to gain support for his site via the Lewes Neighbourhood Plan, and of course he can submit a planning application at any time. In neither case should a decision be influenced by undeliverable promises.
The wider points he makes are also grossly oversimplified, as demonstrated by the March 2016 Civitas think-tank report and the July 2016 House of Lords report. House builders will only build when they are confident that they will have buyers ready and willing to buy. The country-wide problem is that most people in housing need cannot afford the prices that housebuilders demand. We have seen many more greenfield planning permissions given under the Cameron governments, but the consequence is that the builders prefer these greennfield sites, leaving more sustainable urban brownfield sites stalled. We can see local examples of this in both Lewes and Newhaven. Why has nothing happened on the South Downs Avenue site next to Mayhew Way, Lewes, years after full permission was granted? In Newhaven permission for the large development around the Marina, where our MP has her office, has now expired. Last year our housebuilders delivered only 140,000 new houses despite having well over half a million sites with planning permission in their land banks. To take just one example, a national house builder is currently trying to force through 90 new houses at Wivelsfield Green via the appeal system, when their latest Chairman's report shows that at 30 June 2016 they already have enough sites in their land bank for their next 5 years planned delivery.
It is not the planning system that is holding back housing delivery. The blockage in delivery is that it is just not in the interests of the house builders who control the land that already has planning permission to develop it any faster.
John Kay
CPRE Sussex