building on the greenbelt

Building on the 'greenbelt'
Green belt (United Kingdom) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Interactive map: England's green belt - Telegraph

is a hot topic in the UK...

Here's a video from SkyNews:
Planning Changes Put Greenbelt 'At Risk'

And another from the BBC
BBC News - Green Belt protection needed says naturalist Ray Mears

So, what are the issues?

In the UK, it has become very political - after the UKIP party defeated the government...

On many websites of local UKIP groups, the issue of the greenbelt comes very high:
UKIP South Bucks :: Green Belt
Green Belt Housing – Coming To You? | Ukip Walsall
Hands Off Our Greenbelt and Allotments | UKIP North West

UKIP even has a separate Facebook page devoted to the greenbelt:
UKIP Protection of British Greenbelt & Countryside - Newton Abbot, United Kingdom - Political Party | Facebook

Indeed, such is the political force that is UKIP, the Minister for Local Government has responded by making it clear that the greenbelt 'should only be used in exceptional circumstances':

Martin Goodall's Planning Law Blog: Government’s U-turn “to save the Green Belt”
Has the government abandoned the idea of a 5/6 year land supply? | East Devon Alliance

But this pressure from UKIP has been increasing steadily since the local government elections back in the summer - with (another) example from Essex:

UKIP victors to fight green belt homes | Planning Resource

Here is a not-very-sympathetic analysis of UKIP's environmental and greenbelt policies:
The strange case of Dr Earth and the UKIP environment policies | a new nature blog

And here is a piece from William Cash - who recently defected from the Tories and is now UKIP's heritage spokesperson:

New Statesman | Forget the seaside: it's the rural vote, stupid

The topic is also very political in other parts of the world:



Wangari Maathai & The Green Belt Movement - YouTube
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