Garden Grabbing petition presented to Parliament

25 July 2007

Last week Nick Hurd presented his garden grabbing petition to Parliament. In a fantastic response to his online and paper campaign, more than 1,800 residents of Ruislip-Northwood signed up to ‘Stop the Garden Grab’.

The petition stated that with Britain’s gardens under increasing threat of destruction, local opinion is increasingly being disregarded and communities are left powerless to prevent gardens sold off to inappropriate and unpopular developments.

Each large development has a significant impact on the local community, including the loss of precious biodiversity, the increased strain parking and traffic flow and the resulting change in the fundamental character of neighbourhoods against local wishes.

Nick Hurd said, “I wanted to show a strong signal to this Government that the views of local people should not be dismissed. We have all seen the damage that inappropriate development has been done to the character of roads in the constituency like Ducks Hill Road in Northwood and Kingsend and Pembroke Road in Ruislip.

The Government should bring forward legislation to give stronger protection to gardens in planning law and to allow elected local councillors to have greater discretion to protect the character of local neighbourhoods.

THE PETITION HAS NOW BEEN CLOSED

The text below is for reference only...

How do you feel about new housing developments in your community? It is clear that neither the government nor the Mayor of London really cares. That is why I am giving my support to a new national campaign to protect local gardens from being concreted over and stop the over-development of local neighbourhoods.

Under planning rules recently introduced by John Prescott, gardens around homes are no longer classified as ‘green space’. Councils must now follow rigid Whitehall guidelines demanding that new developments cram in as many buildings as possible.

As a result, local communities and local councillors are increasingly powerless to stop suburban gardens being ripped up and the plots replaced with large blocks of flats. Many local constituents will recognise the damage done to the character of Northwood roads such as Ducks Hill Road.

"I can decide what is best for London. I don't have to be obliged to take into account the nimby attitudes of local residents." Giles Dolphin - Mayor of London's Planning Chief

My first parliamentary petition calls for local people to be given a greater say on planning decisions and for communities to be able to protect the character of their local neighbourhoods and garden space.

Ruislip-Northwood’s open spaces are now under real threat from the Government’s new planning guidelines. Despite the best efforts of Hillingdon Council the Planning Inspectorate in Bristol is able to overrule the wishes of local people. Local residents should have the right to stop large blocks of flats being dumped in their neighbourhood if they are out of character with the area.

Please help us fight to stop the garden grab by signing the petition below.