A number of local groups and Councillors, led by the Buckinghamshire Branch of CPRE (The Campaign to Protect Rural England) have signed an open letter to the Chiltern and South Bucks Council, calling on them to withdraw the draft Local Plan before it commences a full Public Inspection.

The Local Plan is intended to set out how the Chiltern and South Bucks areas will develop over the period until 2036, however groups believe that there have been 'a radical change' in circumstances since the Plan was produced last year.

Those who have signed the letter believe the declaration of a climate emergency, plus the move to a Unitary Authority in April, means the Plan in its current form is no longer appropriate.

They instead campaign for a Unitary Plan to be worked on as soon as possible in its place.

Neil Salisbury, Head of Planning at CPRE Buckinghamshire, said: “The draft Local Plan is already out of date. The Council has signed up to the IPCC target of 'an immediate reduction in carbon emissions by 45% from 2010 levels by 2030', yet the Sustainability Appraisal that was carried out on the Plan actually shows it is heading for a 21% increase in carbon emissions over the plan period.

"This is clearly inconsistent.

“The climate change threat means that a radical, and therefore completely new, approach is needed. Tweaking the current Plan will not be good enough.

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"Taking into consideration the introduction of the Unitary, plus the Glover Review recommendation to designate the Chilterns as a National Park, means we should withdraw the proposed Plan and immediately start working on a new, Unitary-wide, plan that acknowledges these events.”

Joy Morrisey, MP for Beaconsfield, is supporting the groups led by the CPRE.

She said: "I welcome this initiative and fully support it.

"We must protect our green belt for future generations.

"We need a South Bucks Local Plan that works for everyone, not just developers.

"I would strongly urge that the plan be withdrawn.

"We need a local plan that is less intrusive on our green belt while providing vital infrastructure and the homes we actually need not just the ones developers want to build."