Archived press release

Date Published: 09/08/06

Expansion plans for Milton Keynes are “seriously and fundamentally flawed”, according to Aylesbury Vale District Council. At a meeting of the council’s cabinet last night (8 August), AVDC members slammed the latest proposals for...

Expansion plans for Milton Keynes are “seriously and fundamentally flawed”, according to Aylesbury Vale District Council.

At a meeting of the council’s cabinet last night (8 August), AVDC members slammed the latest proposals for future development in and around the city.

The cabinet was meeting to consider AVDC’s response to the current public consultation on the proposed growth strategy for Milton Keynes.

At its meeting on 8 August, the cabinet was adamant that any expansion of Milton Keynes beyond its current boundaries must not merge with existing communities in Aylesbury Vale. Members also condemned the number of flaws in the growth strategy and the fact that it fails to take into account AVDC’s concerns over the options for future development of Milton Keynes.

The council’s response criticises the growth plans for:
• Failing to take proper account of public opinion and the concerns and issues raised by earlier public consultation
• Not doing enough to accommodate more housing within Milton Keynes
• Failing to identify a new transport strategy for public transport and other environmentally friendly modes of transport, both for the existing city and the expansion areas
• Not taking proper account of the impact on either the existing communities that will be affected or the local landscape
• Not giving proper consideration to the growth options to the east of the M1 motorway
• Failing to identify defined boundaries to the urban area to provide long-term protection for the countryside around Milton Keynes, particularly those areas adjacent to the planned growth near Newton Longville

The council insists that infrastructure must precede or, at worst coincide with, expansion. In particular, improvements must be made to the roads between Milton Keynes, Buckingham and Aylesbury and the new East-West Rail line must be opened. While accepting that some development may be inevitable, AVDC is calling on Milton Keynes Council and Mid Beds District Council to review the level of development they can accommodate.

Councillor Carole Paternoster, Cabinet Member for Planned Development, said: “The growth strategy is seriously and fundamentally flawed and we wholly disapprove of the proposals put forward. Consultation with local residents was completely unsatisfactory and we cannot understand why the Partnership did not give adequate consideration to the development of Milton Keynes east of the M1. No proposals for the further growth of the city can be credible whilst inadequate work has been done to determine the costs and test the viability of the development east of the motorway. We will be strongly contesting these proposals through the public examination next year.”

A consultant’s report advocating the building of 7,500 homes around Newton Longville by 2026 was accepted as the basis of the Milton Keynes Partnership Committee’s (MKPC) growth strategy at a meeting on 12 June. The report also proposes building a further 7,500 homes in the area between 2026 and 2031, although this will not form part of the MKPC’s submission to the South East Plan.

AVDC will be contacting Newton Longville residents to make sure they are fully aware of the growth plans and the consultation process. A public meeting is also scheduled for next month to give Newton Longville residents the opportunity to discuss the proposals.

Buckinghamshire County Council and Milton Keynes Council are co-ordinating the current public consultation on the growth strategy. Comments received will be considered by each council before they make submissions to the South East Plan, which will include their response to the growth strategy.

The growth plans will then be considered at a public examination next year. AVDC will use this opportunity to voice its concerns over the Milton Keynes expansion plans to the Independent Panel looking into the South East Plan.