Letter: I Hope Our Council Stands Up to the Government

Published on: 22 Dec, 2025
Updated on: 21 Dec, 2025

Green belt land in Normandy now subject to a new housing

From Sir Mike Aaronson

There is something very concerning about the way the Government is seeking to justify its latest moves to weaken green belt protections.

In the opening section of its consultation document on further changes to the National Planning Policy Framework (the NPPF) it states:

“December 2024’s introduction of ‘grey belt’ as a category of land has already had a significant impact. Since the current Framework was updated in December 2024, an unprecedented 80% of major residential appeals located on grey belt land have been approved, homes that likely wouldn’t have been built under previous policy.”

In other words, a definition of “grey belt” that was not approved by Parliament, and that differs dramatically from the earlier version that in 2024 was the subject of public consultation, has resulted in more green belt land being built on, and this alone is offered as a measure of success.

“Grey belt” was initially advanced as land that performed poorly against the five long-established purposes of the green belt. With two of those purposes removed from the criteria for grey belt in the revised NPPF, including the one that is about protection of the countryside from encroachment, it is hardly surprising that more green belt has been built over.

The successful implementation of a flawed policy, introduced by executive diktat, should not be a cause for celebration. I hope Guildford Borough Council will find the political will and the courage to resist the more outrageous planning applications currently being lodged, and not allow our green belt to become a mere statistic from the past.