MPs Have Made It Clear to the Housing Secretary – Surrey Housing Figures Too High

Published on: 3 Jul, 2021
Updated on: 3 Jul, 2021

Guildford Borough’s MPs (left to right): Michael Gove (Surrey Heath), Sir Paul Beresford (Mole Valley), Jonathan Lord (Woking) and Angela Richardson (Guildford).

Surrey’s MPs have met with the Housing Secretary, Robert Jenrick and made it “abundantly clear” that the housing figures for Surrey should be reduced. There is “grave danger that bad decisions will be made on the basis of bad data”.

The views expressed in the “recent” meeting came to light after The Dragon asked the four Conservative MPs, whose constituencies overlap the Guildford borough boundary, whether they were aware of the Coventry MPs’ efforts to draw attention to a similar issue in their area.

Five MPs and the Mayor of the Midlands Andrew Street signed a letter yesterday (June 30) sent by the head of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England in Warwickshire, Sir Andrew Watson to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) asking for an early release of 2021 population data so that it can be incorporated into their planning decisions.

Secretary of State for Housing Robert Jenrick

In the letter, they write: “Given the huge discrepancy between ‘local data’ based estimates and the ONS estimates… there is a grave danger that bad decisions will be made on the basis of bad data – contrary to the stated central mission of ONS, i.e., ‘Better Data, Better Decisions’.

Responding to The Dragon, Sir Paul Beresford said: “It has been made abundantly clear to Robert Jenrick, the Secretary of State for Housing, that Surrey MPs as a group believe that housing figures allocated to Surrey district and borough councils should be reconsidered and reduced.

“Almost all the Surrey MPs very recently had a meeting with Robert where we made it clear that the figures were too high and rather than meeting demand would tend to foster demand.

“We explained to him that he should be concentrating on moving industry northwards and generating housing demand to accompany such action.

“Additionally, it is overdue that Guildford Borough Council initiates a review of their Local Plan as is required every five years. Guildford’s Plan is severely damaging to the nature of the villages in the Guildford Borough Council wards within the Mole Valley constituency.

“I have written twice to the past Liberal leader of GBC and once to the current Residents 4 Guildford and Villages leader of the council asking for this review. This action was in the manifesto promises of the R4G councillors who are elected in these wards and action is well overdue and should have commenced immediately after the last GBC election.”

Woking’s MP Jonathan Lord responded to explain that Sir Paul and Angela Richardson were taking the lead on the issue in Guildford Borough. Michael Gove has, so far, not responded.

No response to our request to comment was received from MPs Angela Richardson or Michael Gove.

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