It’s tempting to view each new housing development as an isolated decision. But East Hampshire is living with the consequences of something deeper — the failure to maintain an effective Local Plan.

Across England, the scale of the problem is stark. As of early 2024, only about one in five councils had adopted a Local Plan in the past five years. Hundreds more are working from policies older than that. Analysts project that by the end of 2025, just 22 percent of Local Plans will still be up to date.

Some delays stem from stretched resources and uncertainty over national reforms. But political caution also plays a role. Publishing a Local Plan means identifying where housing will go and facing the public head-on. For some councils, it feels easier to delay or let plans drift. Yet that short-term calculation has long-term consequences.

In East Hampshire, the impact is clear. The Conservative administration’s failure to act has left the Local Plan out of date and housing delivery too low. That means the council is now operating under the National Planning Policy Framework’s “tilted balance,” which directs councils to approve development unless the harms “significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits.” This makes it far harder to resist speculative bids.

Had the Tory administration delivered a new Local Plan before Labour’s government increased mandatory housing targets in 2024, East Hampshire would be in a stronger position. Under new guidance, the district’s annual target almost doubled, from 574 to 1,142 homes. With a Local Plan in place, critical infrastructure could already be in delivery. Instead, the council is reacting piecemeal to speculative schemes.

A Local Plan is the main tool that allows councils to align infrastructure with development — roads, GP surgeries, schools and utilities — so communities grow sustainably. Without one, developers build in isolation, with no shared responsibility for the services people rely on.

Nowhere illustrates this better than Four Marks and Medstead, where more than 1,000 homes are either approved or under application. Yet there is no new surgery, no meaningful road upgrades, and no expanded community facilities.

When major schemes reach Planning Committee, councillors are put in the firing line. They must either approve in line with national policy and face public outcry or refuse and risk defeat at appeal. Appeals are costly and funded from the public purse. The government’s Planning Inspectorate often sides with developers, and councils cannot match their legal or financial firepower.

The South Downs National Park adds further complexity. In the SDNP, development is highly restricted. Because it covers 57 percent of East Hampshire, the remaining 43 percent must shoulder almost the entire housing allocation. Protecting countryside is vital, and national parks must play a role in that. But shifting housing numbers from one area to another does nothing to solve the housing crisis. East Hampshire’s housing target should exclude the SDNP entirely, allowing the Park Authority to set its own realistic housing figure.

Our Tory MP and local Conservatives now point fingers at the new Labour government and talk about fairness in allocations. But it was Conservative administrations — locally and nationally — that allowed the system to drift.

East Hampshire needs leadership. The district must deliver affordable homes, protect its countryside and invest in infrastructure. It’s time to get on with a new Local Plan before the council is absorbed into a unitary authority in 2028. What happens now will decide whether East Hampshire is protected — or left exposed.