Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, and the Denton South Councillors have today welcomed Stockport Council’s decision to strongly oppose the appeal by Quorum to try and overturn the refused planning permission for the extension of Bredbury Parkway.
In Stockport’s Statement of Case published this week the Council have been very clear that the destruction of the Tame Valley can in no way be justified by the ‘very special circumstances’ Quorum claim to have.
Specifically the Statement says “the very special circumstances necessary to justify the development do not exist. The need and Green Belt location for the development as a whole has not been robustly demonstrated, and therefore the development by definition is harmful to the Green Belt and should not be approved.”
Andrew Gwynne MP said: “This is a very important first step in the appeals process and a significant victory to ensure our beautiful greenbelt is protected. I am delighted that Stockport Council is standing with the residents living nearby who overwhelmingly oppose this greenbelt destruction. I would like to thank the Councillors and Officers in Stockport for taking this position and putting the health and wellbeing of both Stockport and Denton residents first.
Gwynne continued: “However this fight is not over yet, and won’t be until the appeal is refused by the Planning Inspectorate. The Councillors and I will fight tooth and nail until this proposal is dead and buried.”
Councillor Claire Reid added “we still have a long way to go in this process, but for Stockport Council to come out so strongly against the appeal really is the best possible start we could have had. We will let everyone know as soon as the date for the planning appeal is announced, and of continue to keep residents updated every step of the way.”