Sir – I am writing to express my dismay and in the hope of persuading West Oxfordshire District Council not to be bound by the mistakes of the Government, both politicians and senior civil servants, whose mindless meddling in policy, without thinking through the implications of the changes they make, is leaving loopholes in a system which, in this instance, allows developers to literally drive bulldozers through.

I refer to the application from developer Crest Nicholson to build 1,000 homes on Alvescot Downs, to the west of Carterton.

These developers are nothing more than modern carpetbaggers, outside opportunistic exploiters of lapses in a local planning framework, which, through no fault of the district council, they can usurp and bypass the normal channels of planning applications almost to the point of forcing through an approval.

This application must not be allowed to proceed without:

  • A rigorous investigation of all of the implications such a development will give rise to
  • Full consultation and involvement of all the surrounding villages that might be put at risk
  • A fair and proportioned consideration of the need for an extra 1,000 homes in the area.

Brian Milton, Main Street, Clanfield