Mrs. Anne Main MP
Member of
Parliament for
House of Commons
October 2006
Dear Constituent,
I know that you have written to me recently regarding
the proposed railfreight terminal in Radlett. As promised I have made the
Government and Ministers fully aware of the strength of the argument and the
depth of feeling expressed by local residents, such as that found in your
letter to me, and of those I met and addressed in St Albans City Centre at the
protests on the 30th September.
Yesterday I lead a Parliamentary debate entitled
‘Development at the Former Aerodrome Site (Radlett)’ where several constituents
came along joined by representatives of STRIFE - a local campaign group. Please
also find enclosed a copy of the full transcript of it. I wanted this to be a
debate about the inappropriateness of this proposal in planning terms – not the
merits of railfreight in general - as it will be the Government’s planning
department that will ultimately make the decision on the scheme when it is
considered .
Before the debate began I was well aware that the
Minister would not be able to give any definite answer as this application as
it is still subject to a decision by St Albans District Council and she would
not wish to prejudge that decision.
I was disappointed that she did not agree to an early
‘call in’ which may have avoided undue costs for St Albans District Council.
However, I did take heart from the Ministers comments that:
“The local planning authority also needs
to consider wider issues set out in Planning Policy Statement 1, the main
planning policy statement for development. Those are issues to do with
sustainability and the recognition that our quality of life depends on
transport and easy access to jobs, services and shopping, but that there is
also a need to sustain our communities for the longer term.”
I feel this gives an excellent guide to St Albans
District Council and in my opinion bolsters its case for a possible refusal. I
will continue to press the Government, at all levels, to refuse this
inappropriate development and I assure you that I will continue to fight ‘tooth
and nail’ to ensure that our City does not become a ‘Rail freight City’ clogged
with congestion.
You can follow my efforts at www.annemain.com or www.no2railfreight.com. I
look forward to getting in contact with you again soon but if there is anything
else I can help with in the meantime please do get in contact.
With best wishes,
Anne Main MP
Email: maina@parliament.uk
• Tel: 020 7 219 3000 • Fax: 020 7 219 3058