Ding, ding, ding! In the blue corner, it’s Joy Morrissey, government whip and the Tory member for Beaconsfield. And, er, in the other blue corner, it’s Simon Clarke, fellow Conservative MP and representative for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland. The cause of today’s metaphorical bout? Planning and the thorny issue of where to build much-needed new homes.
Conservative MPs have often faced accusations of talking a good game on such issues, only to then turn around and block developments when they occur in or around their own local patch. Recent examples could include Maria Miller and Theresa Villiers, both of whom backed an amendment this month to scrap housing targets and the presumption in favour of development. Both MPs have previously taken to social media to trumpet their achievements in blocking new homes, only to suffer a deluge of criticism from those unable to afford a property.
Such was the fate that befell Joy Morrissey yesterday when she enthused online about the ‘fantastic news’ that Buckinghamshire Council has decided to refuse permission for a local development, following her ‘very robust objections.’ She added ‘thanks to everyone who stood firm!’ and duly incurred a predictable Twitter pile-on for her troubles.
Unlike Morrissey, her colleague Simon Clarke has little time for what he calls ‘unabashed NIMBY-ism’. This morning he threw his support behind a tweet warning that Conservative MPs who celebrate ‘planning permission refusals on Twitter… are celebrating the decline of their own party.’ Clarke wrote: ‘This is sadly completely correct. Leave that to the Lib Dems’ adding ‘We’re the party of opportunity’ in a barely-concealed swipe at some of his unnamed fellow Tories.
Forget new homes: let’s just hope there’s a broad church big enough to accommodate MPs with such differing views…
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