The London Green Belt Council objects to the proposal in the Preferred Options paper to redesignate an undefined area of completely undeveloped Green Belt at West Horndon, for housing and/or employment uses. It is not clear why the extra housing is needed here.

The future evolution of the economy and housing demand is uncertain. Consequently, if the possibility of development in the next fifteen years cannot be ruled out, then we consider that the currently undeveloped land should not be designated in a way which means it can be immediately developed. It should be regarded as 'white land' and only released for development during the course of the plan if monitoring confirms that it is essential. The development of the other sites identified in the Preferred Options paper is likely to be more difficult than the open fields at West Horndon. Developers will want to develop the open fields first and, if that happens and the demand for housing does not increase as much as expected, Green Belt will have been lost unnecessarily and there will be unsightly derelict sites elsewhere.