Saving St Andrews and others from the Planners, the UKIP way.

I fervently hope that residents of North East Fife, especially those concerned about the autocratic and often crippling Fife Structure Plan, have read the UKIP policy on Housing and Planning.

St Andrews and Cupar, facing massive developer led over-development, could both be saved from those dire consequences, were UKIP policy to prevail.

Here are some highlights from the Executive Summary:

UKIP will abolish the Planning Inspectorate (Scottish Reporter) and end appeals to
Government Ministers. Planning decisions will be taken by local authorities and local
Referenda with a final right of appeal to the High Court.

There will be direct binding Referenda on all major housing schemes and economic
developments such as supermarkets, housing developments of more than 50 homes and
other major building projects.

UKIP will abolish centrally and regionally directed housing requirements.

UKIP will scrap centrally and regionally directed targets. UKIP will also abolish
Regional Development Agencies and Regional Assemblies.

UKIP will return to county, local and district plans that will be under the control of the local authorities. UKIP will also introduce a UK National Plan that will provide an overview and guidance for local authorities. This won’t be a rigid framework as is currently the case.

UKIP is opposed to mass housing estates.

UKIP will encourage the building of more ‘community’ housing such as the Dorchester
suburb of Poundbury as well as smaller developments of fewer than 50 homes.

UKIP will demand higher quality and standards of material, craft, soundproofing and
spacing for new homes to ensure that any new houses last as long as Edwardian and
Victorian homes.

From the saved UK contributions to the EU, UKIP will spend 1.5 billion a year on
building new quality social housing and demolishing poor quality houses.

UKIP will encourage the building of new local council homes by local councils instead of forcing developers to provide social housing on new developments which amounts to a ‘homeowners development tax’. That puts house prices up.

UKIP will remove VAT and its replacement Local Sales Tax from the costs of
conversion of listed buildings, buildings in conservation areas and on empty buildings.

UKIP will encourage the return to productive use of the nearly one million homes that are currently empty.