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Open Launch a rural proofing review & suspend the use of the grey-belt test

Created by mrs paula moss
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Launch a rural proofing review into the grey-belt test and completely suspend the use of the grey-belt test for villages for all planning applications pending the outcome.

We want the Government’s review to look into updating planning policy by recognising the primacy of Green Belt purpose, village settlement boundaries & made Neighbourhood Plans when deciding on planning applications.

The 2026 NPPF uses purposes (a), (b) and (d) to identify grey belt. Those tests address the sprawl of large built-up areas, the merging of towns and the setting of historic towns — they do not directly assess the equivalent functions of land around villages. We feel this creates a serious risk that genuinely rural greenbelt land between villages is being judged by tests that do not reflect its function. We believe villages are not spaces between towns; countryside encroachment should be a decisive test.

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