Plea issued to support region’s plans for future (From The Northern Echo)

Plea issued to support region’s plans for future

10:53am Thursday 3rd April 2008 in Campaigns By Mark Tallentire

POLITICIANS and business chiefs last night pleaded with the Government to support the North-East's ambitions for housing, transport and jobs in the next decade.

They called for revisions to the Regional Spatial Strategy, a key planning document with the potential to stifle the region's development.

Today, officials from the Department for Communities and Local Government will begin work on the final draft of the strategy, after eight weeks of consultation ended yesterday.

Last year, The Northern Echo and the North-East Chamber of Commerce launched the Shaping the Future campaign, demanding urgent changes to the strategy.

In February, the Government announced concessions, but it was claimed yesterday that there was still room for improvement.

Bishop Auckland MP Helen Goodman said she welcomed Government moves to raise the limit on the number of houses that could be built in Wear Valley and plans to allow extra growth of the Net Park science centre in Sedgefield, County Durham.

She said: "However, I would still like to see the Eastgate Renewable Energy Village, improvements to the East Coast Main Line and extension of the Tees Valley Metro to Bishop Auckland."

Kevan Jones, the MP for North Durham, called for restrictions on housing numbers to be removed from the strategy.

Durham MP Dr Roberta Blackman- Woods welcomed the inclusion in the strategy of plans to create a rail freight depot at Tursdale, near Durham, but said stronger support should be given to the proposed reopening of the Leamside rail line, linking Tursdale with Pelaw, in Gateshead.

Andrew Sugden, director of policy for the North-East Chamber of Commerce, called on the Government to make major investment in the region's transport network a priority, particularly regarding the A1(M) Western Bypass at Newcastle, the A19 and the A66.

MP Nick Brown, the Government Minister for the North- East, said: "The spatial strategy is to be integrated with the economic strategy, the housing strategy and the transport strategy, so we have one strategy for the region and not four contradictory strategies.

"It is important to get the spatial strategy right. I favour an open, rather than a restrictive, approach."

The finalised strategy will be published in June.