Castle Point Tory MP Bob Spink has launched a new battle against plans to cover the borough with concrete.

He is spearheading a campaign to protect green spaces from over-development and to stop town-cramming in the community.

Tories are nationally pledging new policies to allow local councils to stop such inappropriate development.

This is the latest in a series of moves by Mr Spink, including his latest private member's bill, to stop the developers and solve our roads problems.

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott's new planning regulations classify leafy suburban back gardens as brownfield land.

As a result, Mr Spink said, suburban and urban green spaces were being ripped up across the country, while allowing the production of bogus statistics proclaiming the protection of greenfield land.

Mr Spink added: "Britain's back gardens are under real threat from Prescott's bulldozers and concrete mixers and his cram-them-in policy."

Labour councillor Terry Blackwell agreed greenfield sites should be protected but added he was fed up with brownfield sites not being used.

Published Monday May 24, 2004

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