Labour target 'has overtones of the Communist USSR'

COUNCILLOR BLASTS GOVERNMENT PLANS TO BUILD NEW HOMES AS 'DEAD ON ARRIVAL'

- By JOSEPH CONNOLLY Local democracy reporter

A CONSERVATIVE councillor compared the Labour Government's housing policy to the Communist regime of the USSR in a passionate speech at a Rushcliffe Borough Council meeting.

Conservative cabinet member Roger Upton made the comments as he called on his fellow councillors to write to Westminster to contest mandatory targets for new homes across the UK.

Housing targets, which identify how many homes should be built in each local council area, were introduced by the Conservative government in 2019. In 2022, the then-PM Rishi Sunak scrapped them after opposition from his backbenchers.

But Labour reversed the decision this year after promising to reinstate the targets before their general election win last year.

At the meeting on September 18, Councillor Upton said: "I've brought this motion to full council this evening because this Conservative administration is passionate about managing housing development in our borough ourselves and at the same time safeguarding our greenfield and greenbelt land wherever we can.