Labour sets out grey belt “golden rules”

Labour leader Keir Starmer has set out five “golden rules” for his "grey belt” pledge, which he said would deliver affordable homes, provide infrastructure and improve green spaces.

The Labour party has outlined its plan to create a new class of grey belt land to ensure poor quality and “ugly” parts of the greenbelt are prioritised over environment-rich land, with development benefitting local communities. Land released under this new, proposed category would also need to provide at least 50% affordable housing.

The party, explained Starmer and Angela Rayner, deputy leader and shadow levelling up secretary, would still adopt a “brownfield first” policy but would release some land currently classed as green belt to build much needed homes, “in light of abject Tory failure to build the homes our country needs”.

Labour criticised the Conservative government for, it said, creating a “wild west” of green belt development which had resulted in speculative development on nature-rich green belt land which “often leads to local opposition”.

It also stated that it would take steps to improve upon the government’s brownfield build out rates. It added that areas with enough brownfield land should not release greenbelt.

The party has previously stated …