Property prices 'destroy villages'
Updated on 23 July 2008
Countryside communities risk being destroyed by the huge gulf between property prices and local incomes, a report warns.
Villages will become "exclusive enclaves of the elderly and wealthy" unless planning restrictions are eased to allow more affordable housing.
The stark warning came in a study carried out by Lib Dem MP Matthew Taylor for Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
The research highlighted that wages for people working in rural communities were now £4,655 lower than the national average, while first-time buyer homes cost £16,000 more. It now takes a higher proportion of average income to service a mortgage in the South West than in London.
Mr Taylor called for strictly-controlled housing development in rural areas to create more affordable homes, with the caveat that they are sold to local workers.
"Endless bland housing estates crammed on to the edge of towns are often unattractive, they fail to deliver local services, shops or open spaces," he said. "The residents end up driving into town for everything they need, clogging up the roads. No wonder local people so often oppose them."
He went on: "We are at a crossroads for the countryside. We can continue to let too many villages become exclusive enclaves of the elderly and wealthy, and market towns be ringed with endless housing estates - or we can create attractive communities in which people want and can afford to live."
The report also urged planning restrictions on second homes in Britain's national parks, meaning councils could effectively ensure houses were lived in full-time.
Countryside Alliance chief executive Simon Hart said: "This is an unsustainable situation, and the answer is to ensure that the countryside, which is one of our greatest national assets, does not become an exclusive enclave, but is developed with inclusive, community-minded values at heart.
"This means being bold - not being terrified of building on green fields, cutting VAT on building work and renovations and, crucially, working with local authorities, farmers and landowners to ensure that all suitable land is considered for the development of affordable units."
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