The future of the Wokingham District is being planned for us as you read this. Various schemes have been proposed to meet government targets to build more homes. The Council has felt it has to comply with the top down targets and the planning requirements that have increasingly come from central and regional government in recent years.

These targets and demands suddenly look rather dated. In the short term the building industry is in such a state that developers are not pressing to build hundreds of homes, for fear they cannot sell them. Housing finance is a shadow of its former self before the Credit Crunch.

Plans to provide new schools and other infrastructure that would be needed if we are to rush ahead with more development now have to be viewed against the background of the gathering clouds over public spending. Each of the main parties is bowing to the inevitable. After the election, if not before, any responsible government is going to have to cut spending. This government has indicated already in its forward plans capital spending will take some of the bigger cuts. It is will not be an easy background for Wokingham to bid successfully for capital money to build the facilities for large new housing estates.

Maybe the climate of opinion is also shifting. The Conservatives have unveiled new plans to give much more power to local Councils to decide on how much development they want. The Official Opposition is saying it wants to scrap regional plans and top down targets. Liberal democrats traditionally want more devolved power to local government. Could even this government start to respond to the demand by voters and Councils for more of the important decisions about the size and shape of local communities to be taken locally? That is less likely, but political fashions can sometimes prove irresistible, as cutting spending now seems to be.

I think we need a long hard think about how much extra development we can and should take in the light of these important changes. It is likely migration will be less strong, and that businesses will struggle to create large numbers of new jobs. This is a different background to the one we are used to. There is no need to rush to judgements on big new housing developments all the time there are so many uncertainties around. The priority should be to press on with the redevelopment of the Town Centre, as the Council I believe wishes to do. Financing this will be more difficult, but not impossible.

It is important to preserve or green gaps between settlements. We have to recognise all the time there is no money for extra road and rail capacity, transport constrains what we can do. The persistence of flooding is also a timely reminder that much of our area is low lying. It was or is flood plain. We need to leave some land capable of absorbing water from heavy rains, if we are to avoid more flash floods and persistent bouts of water invasion into more homes. In the meantime, have a look at the plans and send in your views to the local planners.