Councillors to vote on plans for 2,100 new homes

Twm Owen – Local democracy reporter

A crucial vote on a plan intended to set out where up to 2,100 new homes could be built is due to take place next week.

The replacement local development plan is intended to set out how land is used in Monmouthshire through to 2033, including allocations of new employment sites.

Strategic sites identified in the plan include new housing, a care home and hotel at Mounton Road, Chepstow, up to 700 homes east of Caldicot and north of Portskewett and new housing at Dixton Road, Monmouth and 500 homes east of the A465 Heads of the Valleys road at Abergavenny.

The plan will require 50 per cent of all new housing is affordable, with most being available for social rent, and has been championed by the council’s Labour-led cabinet as key to addressing housing affordability.

Coalition

Based on official UK Government statistics Monmouthshire is the most expensive local authority area in Wales to buy a home with an average price of £324,000.

The plan must be approved by a majority of the 46 member council which could lead to a tense meeting at County Hall, in Usk as Labour runs it in a coalition with the single Green Party councillor as a minority administration.

The suspension of longstanding Dewstow member Tony Easson, from the Labour group could further complicate the vote. He now sits as an Independent Socialist, leaving Labour with just 20 members.

The Conservatives, who have criticised the plan throughout the process of drafting it and questioned whether the 50 per cent affordable housing target is achievable, have 19 members while there is a four strong Independent Group.

One other independent, Usk and Llanbadoc member Meirion Howells, sits in a group with Green Party councillor Ian Chandler and often supports the administration in close votes.

Examination

The plan was last discussed by a special scrutiny session in September after more than 4,000 responses were received as part of a public consultation on the council’s preferred plan published last November.

Though many comments argued for the council to either withdraw or rethink particular sites its position is the plan should go forward for independent examination with any proposed changes or revisions a matter for the planning inspector.

For that to happen it must be approved by the council at the Thursday, October 23 meeting and the independent examination process will be able to begin. It must be approved as “sound” by the inspector, who will consider it on behalf of the Welsh Government, to become the council’s planning policy from next year.

The council has been working on the plan, including a number of consultations since Labour came in to power at County Hall in 2022. It had to restart the process after the Welsh Government said the version the Conservatives had been working on, before losing control at the local elections, contained too many new homes.

The replacement local development plan is intended to be the council’s planning policy and any proposed sites will still need to gain approval through the planning process in the usual way.