Cllr Todd Olive writes in the Midweek Herald about new housing.

He talks about the affordable homes to rent that we desperately need. He then goes on to say that in East Devon we have little choice.

East Devon could change its policy on affordable homes on Rural Exception Sites.

Rural exception sites are sites for affordable housing development in rural locations where market housing would not normally be acceptable because of planning policy constraints.

Homes can be brought forward on these sites only if there is a proven unmet local need for affordable housing evidenced by a housing needs survey. This is known as Strategy 35.

Even though there are over 5,000 desperate families on the East Devon housing waiting list, East Devon does not recognise these families as being in need.

East Devon, unlike other local authorities, insists on these useless surveys. The cost about £5,000 each and only go to families who already have a home.

There are only three parishes in the whole of East Devon which have had such a survey in the last two years.

Cllr Todd Olive knows that neighbouring Mid Devon uses the numbers on its housing waiting list to define need and there is no reason why East Devon could not do the same, if it wanted to.

It appears that the NIMBYs are using Strategy 35 to prevent the building of affordable rural housing for these desperate families.

Our rural communities need young families to stop our services from dying.

Robert Persey