New Clause 30 - Access for disabled people
Planning and Compulsory Purchase (Re-committed) Bill
11:15 am
Mr Geoffrey Clifton-Brown (Cotswold, Conservative)
We, too, considered the question of access for disabled people. We tabled many amendments similar to those of the hon. Gentleman, but he got there first, so his amendments were selected. In principle, in the plan-making process, it is absolutely right that there should be full consideration of access for disabled people, which we wholeheartedly support. Every planning applicant should be expected at least to consider this matter. However, I have a slight concern that if we go completely over the top, we could involve the country in a huge cost that is not required. I shall give the hon. Gentleman an example. To require every house in a housing estate development to provide access to disabled people would clearly be an unnecessary use of resources, but requiring a proportion of those houses to provide such access might be reasonable. We need to keep a sense of proportion and strike a balance in dealing with this subject. Having said that, I am hugely sympathetic to the hon. Gentleman's amendments. I hope that the Government will also be sympathetic to them and that they will honour their manifesto commitments.