House Building in Wealden - have we lost control?

Across Wealden, there has been a sharp increase this year - both in terms of speed and volume - in the granting of permissions for major new housing developments, including many that local communities have lodged objections to, and even some that had been previously rejected.

The fact that this is also happening alongside proposed cuts to the Fire Service and budget shortfalls for other essential public services, together with inadequate infrastructure (already under-capacity for the existing population) seems odd, to say the least.

Recent approvals despite warnings and objections by Liberal Democrat and other opposition District Councillors, alongside real-life horror stories such as the foundations of half-built houses being flooded, raw sewage contaminating an open pond in Hellingly, and even leaking onto the streets of Hailsham, have led to a lot of locals understandably asking "What is going on?"

We have decided to try to provide some insight into this very important issue in the form of a Q&A with Councillor Paul Sparks, Leader of the Lib Dem group on Wealden District Council, who was interviewed earlier this month by Crowborough Campaigner and Wealden Lib Dems Exec Member, James Partridge.

Please click here to access the Q&A