§ 3. Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what guidelines for good practice his Department provides regarding disposal of open space and undeveloped land in local authority ownership. [734]
§ The Minister for Construction, Planning and Energy Efficiency (Mr. Robert B. Jones)Guidance to local planning authorities on the release of underused or vacant sites is set out in planning policy guidance note 4 on industrial and commercial development and small firms, and in PPG 3 on housing. Guidance on the disposal of open space with recreational value is set out in PPG 17 on sport and recreation.
§ Mr. HughesDoes the Minister believe that, if a local authority decides—as Southwark did recently—that it wants to get rid of green space open land or other land in its ownership, it is right for it to make the decision in a secret meeting, treating it as a confidential item and neither giving information to the public nor engaging in consultation? Does the Minister agree with the proposition that any disposal of open space—particularly green space—and of council-owned land should be the subject of public consultation, and should feature on an open agenda for council meetings, before any proposal is made?
§ Mr. JonesI am sure that the hon. Gentleman would not expect me to comment on a particular case, but I certainly agree with his general proposition that such matters should be dealt with openly. Indeed, PPG 17 makes specific provision for such a disposal to be advertised in local papers two weeks on the trot, and for the local authority to take into account any objections that are made.
§ Sir Sydney ChapmanI welcome the initiatives taken by the Department to utilise and develop derelict and vacant land, especially in inner-city centres; but will my hon. Friend stress the importance of keeping a proportion of that land as open space for the amenity and enjoyment 446 of people living and working in the area? As national tree week is approaching, will he also stress the importance of planting trees in such areas in our townscapes, as well as in the countryside?
§ Mr. JonesI am grateful to my hon. Friend, who has a long history of commitment to such causes. I certainly agree with his proposition. In fact, although it is clearly right in the interests of sustainable development for us to concentrate new development in existing urban areas, we also want to ensure the protection of open spaces, particularly recreational open spaces. However, it is not just a question of keeping what we have. We also want to encourage more open space in urban areas. It is interesting to note that, in an advertisement in The Times today, the London Docklands development corporation claims that docklands contains open space equivalent to 160 new football pitches. We are making progress.
§ Mr. SheermanWill the Minister join me in congratulating a Labour local authority, that of Kirklees, on taking a piece of waste space and building, by way of a public-private partnership, a wonderful stadium that yesterday won first prize from the Royal Institute of British Architects for the best new architecture this year? Will he take a message and give it to his Front-Bench colleagues—that it would be impossible to start such a partnership today because of the regulations that the Government have since introduced?
§ Mr. JonesI certainly do not agree with the hon. Gentleman's last point, because we have introduced more flexibility precisely to encourage local authorities to go down the partnership road. Of course I agree that it is right that the hon. Gentleman's local authority and others should utilise vacant space for developments that are of use to the community and, for that matter, to get new commercial development as well, because that is very much in the interests of sustainable development.
§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonDoes my hon. Friend agree that perhaps he should have been more effusive in response to my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet (Sir S. Chapman) who, of course, initiated the campaign "Plant a Tree in '73" when he represented another constituency? Does the Minister accept that open spaces in urban areas are precious and that there should always be a bias against any development of them? I am not speaking about derelict land: the question does not relate to that. Will he give me the assurance that I and others seek, that school playing fields which become surplus to education requirements will not be developed for housing or similar projects but will be developed for recreation and other such purposes for the community?
§ Mr. JonesI am sorry that my hon. Friend thinks that I was not effusive enough in reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Chipping Barnet, who certainly has a long and distinguished record. In reply to my hon. Friend's main point, of course we want to protect recreational open space. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I recently rejected an otherwise excellent project in London precisely because it would have led to a loss of metropolitan open land. My hon. Friend may rest assured that we shall certainly take such matters into account every time we judge such an application.