Tuesday 20th June 2023
SARAH ATHERTON MP BACKS COUNCILLORS ON LOCAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN DECISION
Following the vote last week by County Borough Councillors to reject the Wrexham Local Development Plan, Member of Parliament, Sarah Atherton MP, has come out publicly to back their decision.
In a statement following the vote, Mrs Atherton said:
“While democracy was placed under considerable and unacceptable pressure in the Wrexham Council Chamber, the voice of the majority in Wrexham held out. The Welsh Government’s Future Wales 2040 Plan imposes around 7,000 new homes in Wrexham on green belt land with no road upgrades to support such mass development. This Local Development Plan was not designed with Wrexham’s best interests in mind. What we saw at Wrexham Council was true devolution, with locally elected representatives making decisions for local people. Whilst the potential for judicial review looms, today democracy prevailed.”
This week, the Welsh Government Deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters MS, visited Wrexham. In comments made to Wrexham.com regarding the large development on Lower Berse Farm and the recent ‘Roads Review’ related to the A483 junction, Mr Waters said:
“I have just driven the junctions to see it for myself. I think adding large housing estates right on a congested junction is just asking for more trouble. I think the decision we made is the right one and for the right reasons. The question now is, what do we do instead? That’s not something we come up with a flippant answer for, that’s got to be thought through and worked through.”
Speaking later about Mr Waters’ comments, Sarah Atherton MP said:
“I agree emphatically with the Deputy Minister’s comments. As we all know, the traffic congestion on the A483 junction is dreadful. This is one of the many reasons why Wrexham Council decided to vote down the Local Development Plan. It’s encouraging that even Lee can see the problem! Although, it isn’t lost on us locally that the Welsh Government’s Roads Review is the reason there are no upgrades to the A483 – or any other roads for that matter! When you want to introduce 7,000 additional homes to an area - in the form of massive housing estates - the transport infrastructure needs to support this change. This also comes at a time when public transport funding for buses is being cut by the Welsh Labour Government in Cardiff – and recent projections have the population of Wrexham falling over the coming years. It’s no wonder that Wrexham Council said no to a Local Development Plan which doesn’t serve Wrexham’s needs.”