The Bristol region’s masterplan for homes and jobs over the next 20 years appears dead in the water before it has even been published. West of England metro mayor Dan Norris has told the Government that talks have broken down and agreement is impossible, so all work on the spatial development strategy (SDS) has stopped, blaming South Gloucestershire Council for “walking out” of discussions.
He accused the council’s Conservative leader Cllr Toby Savage of “gambling with the green belt” and warned that the area was now at the mercy of unscrupulous developers, who could push through unwanted and unsustainable proposals because no regional blueprint was in place. But Cllr Savage insists he has not walked away from any talks and branded Mr Norris’s claims “false” and a “desperate tactic to get his secretly developed plan approved”.
The councillor said his local authority had been “banging on the mayor’s door” for months, demanding to help develop the SDS, but Labour’s Mr Norris had ignored them. It is the latest bust-up in a year-long feud between two of the West of England’s top politicians, and the third time this year that disagreements over the draft housing plan have spilt over into a public row between the pair.
