A Wirral councillor has called for the borough’s plan to build 12,000 homes over the next 15 years to be delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Work on Wirral’s Local Plan, which is set to see a large concentration of homes built in Birkenhead and Wallasey, is well under way.
But Lib Dem councillor Allan Brame said the current November deadline does not give enough time for work to be completed, as council officers are increasingly focused on managing Covid-19.
Cllr Brame said: “Neither staff nor residents are in any position to focus attention on the next stages of the Local Plan.
“In my view an urgent approach should be made to the government to suspend the process until the coronavirus crisis is resolved.
“It is absurd to think it can continue under the present circumstances.”
Wirral Council has extended the Local Plan public consultation period until 5pm on April 6 due to the impact of the virus.
But Cllr Brame did not think this was enough. He added: “In the current emergency, I fear a two week extension is neither here nor there.”
Independent councillor Moira McClaughlin supported Cllr Brame’s call for the process to be delayed.
Wirral Council must produce its Local Plan by November under government rules and national targets mean 12,000 homes must be built in the borough by 2035.
In January, the council said the Local Plan will protect the greenbelt, as it announced a ‘brownfield first’ strategy.
These are the larger brownfield sites the council plans to build on.
Major brownfield development sites:
Wirral Waters, Wallasey/Birkenhead docks
Hind Street, Birkenhead
Woodside, Birkenhead
Hamilton Park, adjoining Wirral Waters
Beaufort Road, Birkenhead
Europa Car Park, Birkenhead
Europa Pools, Birkenhead
Rose Brae, Birkenhead
Vue Cinema, Birkenhead
Scotts Quay, Wallasey
Seacombe-New Brighton riverside corridor
Rock Ferry High, Rock Ferry
Acre Lane, Bromborough
Pasture Road, Moreton
Under current plans, council officers will put together the finer details of the plan once the public consultation ends.
It will then be put to councillors in a full council vote this summer.
But the government’s advice on social distancing could see most council meetings cancelled for months to come, calling into question how the Local Plan will be voted on.
A spokesperson for Wirral Council, said: “We are in regular contact with government officials while we consider our options to take the Local Plan forward during these challenging and unprecedented times.”
