We have now learnt that Boris Johnson mayor for London has given the go
ahead to Hillingdon council to build on Lake Farm Country Park and
Botwell common. We await the outcome of the secretary of state's
decision which is expected this week.
I convened a meeting on Saturday 20th April at which local residents
expressed their fury at the Mayor for London's decision. Boris Johnson's
decision flies in the face of his earlier commitments to protect the
green belt and his statements opposing school developments on green belt
land.
This is a disgraceful betrayal of our local community by Boris Johnson.
He has broken every promise he gave to us before he was re-elected that
he would protect our green belt. He has also contradicted his recent
statements against building schools on the green belt and using school
developments as an excuse to build on our cherished open spaces. Our
local residents, local councillors and I are committed to campaigning
against the threat to our green belt.
It was also revealed at the public meeting that the council has
submitted a formal proposal to appropriate a much bigger piece of the
Lake Farm and Botwell common than originally planned for the new primary
school. I am really worried now that the council is taking a much larger
proportion of our country park than was first proposed. I fear that they
now have plans to build on another section of the park for a secondary
school. The council starts its consultation on secondary school
expansion in September. It is too much of a coincidence that they now
want to appropriate such a sizeable increase in the land take of our
country park. Consultation on this appropriation of the land ends on the
30th April. No local residents have been written to and only a small
advert has been written in the gazette. I am urging local residents to
write in objecting to this land grab by the council.
