Local Plan Consultation Opens as Tonbridge & Malling Leader Tells Minister the Intervention Was Unnecessary

Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council's Regulation 19 Local Plan consultation has formally opened, giving residents, businesses and landowners the chance to submit formal representations on the draft plan. The council is opening it under protest: Council Leader Cllr Matt Boughton has written directly to Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook to argue the Government's order to proceed was unnecessary.

As this site has reported, Full Council voted on 3 September to pause the plan rather than send it forward. Councillors had three main worries: that South East Water's infrastructure couldn't support the housing numbers the Government expects the borough to deliver, concerns about foul drainage, and doubts over the 'vision led' transport approach national planning policy requires. Fewer than 24 hours later, Pennycook directed the council to proceed with the consultation regardless.

The council says it is now legally bound to run the consultation and cannot simply refuse to hold it, so it opened on 11 September as directed. It gives residents, businesses, landowners and organisations the chance to make formal representations on whether the draft plan is legally compliant and 'sound' - built on the evidence gathered since the Regulation 18 consultation ran between November 2025 and January 2026 - before it goes to a government-appointed inspector for independent examination.

Cllr Boughton used the consultation's launch to publish a strongly worded letter to Pennycook setting out why he believes the intervention should be withdrawn. "It is clear that it would be costly and counterproductive to progress a plan for which the majority of houses within it cannot actually be delivered and which therefore will not meet the soundness test," he wrote, adding that pushing ahead regardless "would in fact actively frustrate the Government's ambitions for housing delivery; potentially result in even more sustained water shortages throughout the borough (as well as other authorities also served by [South East Water]); but also fail to provide a sound plan that can be legally adopted." He added that he did not believe the Government "wishes to actively worsen the supply of water in the south east, but this would be the case should this plan based on the current position progress as directed."

Speaking about the consultation itself, Boughton said: "We have launched the consultation today because we are legally required to do so but we do not believe that this is a good use of taxpayers money or time. I hope that the Minister will see sense and let those of us that know and live in the local area make the right decisions for our borough." He struck a similar note in the council's own consultation announcement, telling residents the council remains "deeply concerned about the availability of water supply and infrastructure capacity to support the level of growth required by Government housing targets," while still encouraging people to take part in the formal process and have their say.

Once the consultation closes, the council must review the representations received and decide whether the plan is ready to proceed to independent examination, at which point the plan, its evidence base and every representation would be forwarded to the Secretary of State. Whatever residents submit, and whatever the Leader's letter argues, the process the Government ordered is now formally under way. Sources: Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council and Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council