Cherwell Heights Housing Action Group

A Better Option

We have never argued that there should be no new housing, only that we are being forced by government policy to accommodate too many, and that putting them all on this one site compounds the problems. We believe that the District and County Councils should be fighting the government's plans to build the number of houses being forced on us. These are not for the natural growth of our own families, but mostly for people moving from the north or Londoners that want to live in the countryside. If councillors won't fight the government, they should look for the least-bad option for Banbury, and that is distribution. Spreading the problems reduces them, while dumping them all in one place makes them worse. Not so long ago this council preferred distribution. We still believe it is the least-bad choice. Ours is not a NIMBY argument, we accept that distribution would probably include some houses in our area. Changes in government policy make new options available. The one site fits all idea is a fallacy as is the suggestion that this is the only way to get developers to pay for infrastructure.