Have environmental concerns taken a back seat due to the current political climate?

Undoubtedly, environmental issues should be a high priority for Brentwood, with a staggering 89% of our borough in the green belt.

One of the largest issues currently affecting Brentwood is housing development and the sacrifice of green land to fulfil this demand. The current Conservative mantra and response that 'we need to build new homes', whilst true, cannot be done without consideration towards the environmental impact of these plans.

With the extensive plans of local development, more than ever, we need environmental concerns addressed through every stage of the process. As such, with the building of new homes, what will the impact be of increased cars? Not only do we need to know what our transport links are, but do these services remain viable? Are bus services, threatened? Are train services accessible for everyone?

There is still plenty of progress to be made on many environmental issues locally such as air pollution and the potential of flooding, as the local development plan highlights.

In my ward of Brentwood North, proposals have been received by Tesco, outlining plans to build 450 homes on the Hopefield Animal Sanctuary site near Doddinghurst Road where parking and access are huge concerns and Ongar Road, a main route into the Town centre, currently a section lying within an air quality management area. This is a development that could profoundly affect the local community in terms of its environmental impact.

Liberal Democrat policies on the environment are clear and driven by those that have the energy and passion to fight to keep them on the agenda all the time.

Therefore, we must ensure that all issues concerning our environment, although highly complex, are continuously addressed and the needs of our environment are fully met.