Residents in a Nottinghamshire village are up in arms over Mansfield District Council’s decision to demolish their local pub and replace it with housing.
The Three Lions in Meden Vale will be flattened to make way for a complex of 41 affordable flats, bungalows and houses, despite objections from the locals.
Having closed its doors for the final time in January 2022, the property has stood vacant ever since, with no one coming forward to run it. Despite a local campaign set up to preserve the venue as an ‘asset of community value,” the district council obviously didn’t see this as a viable option. It approved Shape Land and Property Ltd’s plans for development.
Following the decision, former independent district councillor Phil Shields told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It takes away virtually the only community asset this village has got left.” He added, “It [the village] has now got absolutely nothing… the people of Meden Vale will now have to walk a minimum of two miles to their local pub.”
This habit of councils favouring large sums of money brought in by developers at the expense of the wishes and well-being of their constituents is nothing new and is happening up and down the country. They care little about the fracturing of communities their actions bring, as this helps to consolidate their power.
We are told that new, affordable houses are needed for the swelling population and the younger generations struggling to get onto the property ladder. But for a nation with a falling birthrate, and considering that “affordable housing” is anything but, it does beg the question of who these houses are for.
Not even green belt land is safe. Years of unrestrained housing developments have devastated local wildlife, with the UK having lost 97% of its wildflower meadows over the past eight years, which, in turn, has eliminated an estimated 60% of our insect population in as little as thirty years. As for ancient woodlands, we have lost an eyewatering 99%, and the UK is now one of the least wooded nations in Europe. Strange behaviour indeed for a government hellbent on green policies and climate lockdowns.
It is pretty clear that our government doesn’t care about our environment or the wishes of the British people, and it’s been a long time since a government did care.
The Homeland Party fights for our people and our land. We would stop immigration and, therefore, the need for constant housing developments. We would also ensure that our beautiful nature and wildlife would be protected for future generations.
