MSP Carlaw: Waterfoot plan '˜must be defeated' again

He is incensed that comments he made in Holyrood about the need for more housing appear to have been interpreted as some kind of support for a scheme he has opposed from the outset.

In last week’s issue a spokesman for developer Gladman said: “The housing shortage has been highlighted in Holyrood by local MSP Jackson Carlaw.

“Any new building in East Renfrewshire will be on green belt land because there is nothing else available.”

In June Mr Carlaw attacked a revised version of the plan to create almost 200 new homes, and said it was just as unacceptable as when thrown out the last time.

This week he again made it clear that just because the area needs more homes doesn’t mean they should be built just anywhere.

He told the Extra: “It is clear the developer is worried as they seek to deliberately misquote my views on housing to defend their own money grabbing development.

“Scotland-wide there is a need for more housing but East Renfrewshire has been asked to bear too much over the years.

“This unwarranted and unwanted development would put further pressures and strains on our roads, schools and represents a fundamental change to the community.

“All of these concerns were taken on board by The Scottish Government Reporter back in 2014-2015 when the application was rightly rejected, and this time it should be no different.”

In his objection Mr Carlaw says: “Much is made in the Local Development Plan of ensuring that East Renfrewshire as whole retains its appeal of being ‘a desirable place to live and work’.

“However consistent development of Waterfoot will have the opposite effect”.

Green spaces which include the green belt are important for a community to use and should not be burdened with buildings, we have seen occur with Waterfoot Park, yet this development represents a further incursion into the ever decreasing greenbelt in Waterfoot.