Dunsfold Result totally perverse: Doughty

2.06.31pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 29th Sep 2009

Commenting on the Decision by the Secretary of State to refuse the Dunsfold Park development Sue Doughty said: "This decision is perverse. Despite strong support for the additional housing, and major climate change benefits the government has chosen to reject a scheme which would have taken our approach to sustainable development to world class. As a result local families will continue to struggle to find suitable housing."

Sue, who in Parliament was a member of the Environmental Audit Committee added "For years we have been looking for well thought out schemes like this. Instead local people will find that the aviation industry on the site increases and that no decent solutions are found to local traffic problems.

"The A281 will certainly see a major increase in traffic due to the Broadbridge Heath expansion, a scheme which Surrey County Council chose not to object to but locally we could stand to lose in many other ways.

"It is now far more likely that Cranleigh will see more development on its fringes being undertaken in a relatively unplanned way, as is often the case with such developments. I also have concerns that the proposals for expansion of rail track to Cranleigh will not now go forward as a result.

"This government has shown that it is failing to keep up with other countries, such as Germany in the development of true sustainable systems and I believe that we cannot trust the Tories to go ahead in this direction.

"We are already aware that the Tories are holding back on major housebuilding programmes nationally and I fear that their commitment to sustainable development will, especially given their local record, be now stronger than the current government."