Building on five reserve housing sites around High Wycombe is "inescapable", the town's MP said at a public forum this weekend.

Asked if the five areas should be developed for house building, Steve Baker told residents at Micklefield Library the schemes will have to go ahead "whether we like it or not".

Campaigns have sprung up across High Wycombe after Wycombe District Council’s announcement to release Slate Meadow, Gomm Valley, Terriers Farm and two Abbey Barn sites for development.

Last week, the Save Slate Meadow group announced it was turning its attention to winning the best deal for residents after losing the battle to protect the land from housing developers.

And Mr Baker echoed the call, saying people need to get out of a "negative" mindset and embrace the good that can come of the projects.

He said: "When a site has been reserved for development for 50 years, we do have to accept that some development is required, whether we like it or not.

"Particularly for younger people who want somewhere to live. If we want High Wycombe to be a dynamic, flourishing and prosperous place then some development is necessary.

"What I want to see is on all of those sites the amenity value improved. The proposals for each one of those sites still leave a large amount of green space.

"I want the council to make sure that those green spaces are better than they are now. Is it a hard sell? Yes. Is it inescapable? Yes. Are we trying to make the best of it? Yes."

The council decision to release the five sites came after government housing targets grew from around 400 per year to as many as 700 - with the shortfall backdated to 2011.

A series of council workshops over how the developed areas would look were branded a "waste of money" by the Hands off Gomm Valley group.

Mr Baker reassured Micklefield residents - many of whom overlook Gomm Valley - that he is fighting to change the "flawed" planning system to make it fairer on households affected by key developments.

He said: "The planning system just isn’t working right. People who are neighbours are asked to accept the cost of building on it [Gomm Valley].

"The Community Infrastructure Levy goes to the council, not the householders, so people who are being told they will only get the costs of this development are bound to say no.

"What I would like to see is a system where the residents have more of a say of what is done and share in the benefits much more closely.

"Then there’s the incentive to say yes and the power to refuse."

Mr Baker chaired Wycombe Conservatives' open meeting alongside prospective councillors Israr Khan and Tom Pike.

Micklefield residents aired issues including the strain on A and E services, bringing big business to the district and the lack of community facilities against the number of new developments.