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Main Question again proposed .
It being after Ten o’clock, the debate stood adjourned.
Debate to be resumed tomorrow.
Petitions
Planning (Leighton Buzzard)
10.15 pm
Andrew Selous (South-West Bedfordshire) (Con): I rise to present a petition signed by more than 10,500 of my constituents, principally from Leighton Buzzard and Linslade, opposing unsustainable housing growth imposed on our area without adequate infrastructure. The petition was put together by Mrs. Ann Gates and members of the Leighton Buzzard Opposes Unsustainable Development—LOUD—committee.
The Petition of the people of Leighton Buzzard, Linslade and surrounding parishes of Eggington, Heath and Reach and Hockliffe,
Declares that, while recognising the need for affordable housing growth to meet local need, it strongly objects to the disproportionate and unsustainable proposals to build 6,000 dwellings on 850 acres of Green Belt land around their communities. This enforced indiscriminate development is a direct result of Leighton Linslade being placed in the Growth Area for South Bedfordshire. Large-scale housing developments have been ongoing around the south of Leighton Buzzard since 2001, and a further such development of 1,300 homes is currently going through the planning process. However, this recent expansion has not brought with it more jobs or opportunities for local people. Their town is at breaking point. They are already unable to sustain the existing population with healthcare, education, policing, social care, sporting and community facilities that it needs. Traffic congestion is intolerable, with roads being completely grid-locked at peak times. They believe that further large-scale development will place an impossible extra strain on an area that is already woefully short of infrastructure. It will accelerate the decline of our historic town centre. There will be a hugely negative impact on their local environment, their communities and their quality of life. Large sections of their Green Belt will be lost forever. Their small market town and the surrounding villages will be irreversibly changed for the worse.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government to reject the proposed development and any similar future unsustainable developments, and to recommend that Leighton Linslade and surrounding parishes are excluded from the Growth Area for South Bedfordshire.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.
Post Office Closures (Thanet)
10.18 pm
Mr. Roger Gale (North Thanet) (Con):
I have the honour to present two petitions on behalf of Councillors Roger Latchford, Ted Watt-Ruffell, Stephen Broadhurst and Michael Jarvis and residents of Thanet in Kent. The petitions relate to the proposed closure of local post offices and bear the signatures of more than 1,800 people. They relate specifically to the constituents of Minnis bay and the Dane valley in Margate. The former is a predominantly elderly area and the latter is one of the most deprived areas not only in the south-east but in the country. My constituents consider that the consultation period has been too short, that the proposals
were generated by computers and poorly checked by humans, that the time scale for the proposal has been truncated and that effects on the communities have been ill considered. My constituents hope that the consultation is genuine and that the Post Office will reflect this strong reflection of public opinion in its decisions. The petitions state:
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons call upon the Government, as the major shareholder in Post Office Ltd., to withdraw the current proposals and review the funding of the Post Office network.
Following is the full text of the petitions:
[ The Petition of Roger Latchford of Birchington in Kent and residents of Thanet,
Declares that the proposed reduction in the number of Post Offices serving our communities will be socially damaging and is unwelcome.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons call upon the Government, as the major shareholder in Post Office Ltd., to withdraw the current proposals and review the funding of the Post Office network.
And the Petitioners remain, etc. ]
[ The Petition of Cllrs. Stephen Broadhurst, Michael Jarvis and Edwin Watt-Ruffell who represent the residents of Dane Valley, Thanet,
Declares that the proposed reduction in the number of Post Offices serving our communities will be socially damaging and is unwelcome.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons call upon the Government, as the major shareholder in Post Office Ltd., to withdraw the current proposals and review the funding of the Post Office network.
And the Petitioners remain, etc. ]
Post Office Closures (Boat of Garten)
10.20 pm
Danny Alexander (Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey) (LD): I have the honour to present a petition on behalf of concerned users of the post office in Boat of Garten, a small village in my constituency, which has been collected by the Boat of Garten community council and signed by 354 people, which represents three quarters of the population of the village and includes several business people and the local MSP.
The Petition of the Community Council and residents of Boat of Garten and vicinity, Inverness-shire, Scotland,
Declares that the Petitioners are concerned for the future of their local Post Office in Boat of Garten and the damaging economic and social effects that any closure would have on their community. Further declares that the Boat of Garten Post Office is widely supported by local residents, businesses and visitors to the Cairngorms National Park and that public transport is insufficient to allow vulnerable residents access to any other Post Office.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to ensure that Boat of Garten Post Office is retained before irreparable damage is done to the well-being, sustainability and cohesion of our community.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.
Post Office Closures (St John’s Road)
10.21 pm
Greg Clark (Tunbridge Wells) (Con): I rise to present two petitions dealing with two of the four proposed post office closures in the borough of Tunbridge Wells, the four being in Bidborough, St. John’s, Langton Green and Hawkhurst.
The closure of a post office rips the heart out of a community. A post office has been in the St. John’s area for more than 60 years, yet the consultation process lasted just six weeks, with decisions taken in as little as two weeks after that. The inadequacy of the consultation process gives us serious cause for concern, but we hope that the representations that my constituents have made will be taken seriously by the managers of the post office.
The first of the two petitions relates to the St. John’s post office and is signed by 1,574 of my constituents. In a recent public meeting attended by 300 people, it was established that the post office is a profitable and successful sub-post office, run by Sam and Rai Patel, in an area with an expanding population that has inadequate alternatives, in the sense that the existing Crown post office is inadequate.
The Petition of customers of St John’s Road Post Office and local residents of St John’s Road and surrounding villages,
Declares that the Government must keep St John’s Road Post Office open.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons accept this petition and call upon the Government and the Post Office to overturn their decision to close St John’s Road Post Office.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.
Post Office Closures (Bidborough)
10.22 pm
Greg Clark: The second petition relates to the village of Bidborough, near Tunbridge Wells. Some 964 residents of Bidborough have appended their names and more than 250 people recently attended a public meeting, expressing their support for Reshma and Kiran Misrani, who took over the post office in good faith only 16 months and now find their livelihood threatened. During the time that they have run the post office business has increased and they have been allowed to extend their opening hours. It would be ridiculous if the post office was to close on the basis of old information.
The Petition of customers of Bidborough Post Office and local residents of Bidborough and surrounding villages,
Declares that the Government must keep Bidborough Post Office open.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons accept this petition and call upon the Government and the Post Office to overturn their decision to close Bidborough Post Office.
And the Petitioners remain, etc.
ADJOURNMENT
That this House do now adjourn.— [Tony Cunningham.]
Adjourned accordingly at twenty three minutes past Ten o’clock.
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