KIRKLEES Council’s controversial blueprint for future housebuilding in the area is set to be withdrawn this week.

But another one will now be drawn up after the Planning Inspectorate insists it wants far more space allocated for housebuilding and Kirklees to co-operate more effectively with neighbouring local authorities on the issue.

Kirklees Council Leader Clr Mehboob Khan said the number of houses already allocated will remain but more will now have to be added in.

He warned it could mean even more green spaces in Huddersfield may now be under threat from development.

And he revealed that the Inspectorate had also said Kirklees had not consulted effectively enough with neighbouring local authorities such as Calderdale, Leeds and Bradford.

But he claimed that the council has an effective relationship with them and claimed this reason was simply ‘red tape.’

Under the LDF plan – the masterplan for development policy in Kirklees – the council was expected to draw up areas where 22,470 new homes could be built by 2028.

Now the Government, via the Planning Inspectorate, is demanding the council increase this figure by up to a third.

As a result the council may now have to allocate previously protected green space to make way for up to 29,211 new homes.

The council’s new LDF is expected to be completed by December.

It is feared that protected land – particularly green space on the M62 corridor – may now be under threat.

Clr Khan said: “It’s beyond belief why the Inspectorate has taken this position. It means we will have to take another look at the numbers, but we are not going back to the starting point.

“We need to have more discussions within the council and the communities. We also need to provide evidence that we have co-operated more with surrounding local authorities such as Calderdale, Leeds and Bradford.”

But he added: “It’s a dictat. The Government is trying to dictate to local authorities the numbers of houses to build. We will look at ways of working with the Inspectorate to get these figures reduced.”

“The LDF was prepared in the context of a buoyant housing market and we earmarked ample housing but the Government inspector, who is responsible for implementing the Coalition’s policies, has demanded even more.

“It is a real blow for Kirklees to have this unexpected and worrying response but the reason for it lies with those who now have the minister’s ear.

“Developers are major funders of the Conservative party and they were opposed to the abolition of the regional spatial strategy which dictated housing numbers.

“The Government took two years to abolish the RSS – opposed every step of the way by developers. These developers are now using their influence to re-introduce an increase in housing numbers and communities in Kirklees will now suffer.”

Mike Wood, Labour MP for Batley and Spen, said: “The council accepted our submission to the LDF arguing for areas to be protected, most notably in the built up areas of Batley and Spen Valley, from new housing development but this edict from the Coalition means these areas will now have to be re-examined to satisfy these demands. The Government’s hunger for more housing will have a direct impact on people in the Spen Valley.”

Under the LDF the Kirklees area was split into six ‘tiers’ which reflected the number of homes due to be built there compared with the amount of people living in those areas.

The higher tiers were towns with a high population such as Huddersfield and Dewsbury while tiny places such as hamlets were in tier six.

Homes were not allocated to specific areas or plots – that was due to happen in the second stage.

The Planning Inspectorate’s move does mean that more homes will now be added into the tiers.