Shadow communities secretary Caroline Flint has hit out at the coalition's plans to make it easier for businesses to "by-pass" the planning system. During the Commons debate on the Budget, she said that while ministers claimed they wanted to give people more of a say about planning matters, its policies did the opposite. More greenfield sites will be developed as the Government has ditched targets for building on previously-used land, while proposals for 200,000 new homes had been dropped, she added. Turning to communities secretary Eric Pickles, she said: "This Budget was crying out for ministers to support housing. It didn't happen. But all this Budget has come up with is the idea to allow commercial properties to be turned into homes without requiring planning permission. If you really believe that the answer to this country's housing crisis is turning some empty offices into luxury penthouses, or asking people to live in disused out-of-town business parks or derelict warehouses on industrial estates, then you had better think again." Read more on 24dash.
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