Stop misleading Londoners-Building on Green Belt won’t solve housing crisis

National Day of Action for Nature, Parks and Green Spaces 18 April 2026 (Part I)

On Saturday April 18th, just ahead of the local elections in May, groups and communities across the UK will be taking part in a UK-wide Day of Action for Nature, Parks and Green Spaces. The purpose is simple: to demonstrate, visibly and collectively, that people everywhere care deeply about the natural world and want to see it protected and restored.

CPRE London will be writing to Sir Keir Starmer about increasing threats to London’s countryside arising from his Government focusing on housebuilding to the exclusion of nature protections and even credible housing policies.

We want you to write too.

Dear Prime Minister,

Please stop misleading Londoners. Building on Green Belt cannot solve the housing crisis.  

We’re constantly told we have a housing shortage – we just need to build more homes and have to build on Green Belt. And now protected landscapes and farms in London’s Green Belt under threat with the constant refrain “we’re not building enough homes”.

We’re told building on Green Belt is essential to solving the housing crisis. But this is at best a distraction from addressing the real causes of the crisis. At worst it is outright misleading.  

• Building new homes doesn’t make housing more affordable. The government itself has said building 1.5 million houses will bring prices down by less than 1%.
• And in any event, planning permission is already in place for 300,000 new homes, on brownfield land, in London. Those will take 10 years to build and meanwhile more brownfield land becomes available every year.

Getting to grips with the affordability emergency means changing policy, not just talking about housebuilding.

• To get rents under control, government must implement emergency rent controls and other ways of restraining the market.
• To prevent yet more homelessness, Government must cover housing costs adequately. It is far cheaper to stop a family losing their home than to pay for months or years in temporary accommodation.
• Where developments have stalled because flats are not selling, government and the Mayor of London should convert those homes to social housing.

And we ask you to reverse damaging grey belt policy and halt the London Green Belt Review immediately. 

Yours sincerely,

Take action now! – The May 2026 local elections matter.

Write to Sir Keir Starmer

• Write an actual real life letter and put it in the post! Sir Keir Starmer, Prime Minister, No 10 Downing Street, London, SW1A 2AA.
• Write via the 10 Downing Street web form https://contact.no10.gov.uk/
• Write to his parliamentary email keir.starmer.mp@parliament.uk

Other actions you can take.

1. CPRE London is part of the More Natural Capital Coalition’s election campaign – 10 Pledges for London’s Environment. Sign the petition to show May 2026 election candidates you support the 10 Pledges.
2. And on Thursday 7 May 2026 – Use your vote! Before then, you can ask your candidates if they will protect nature and green spaces and call for real solutions to the housing crisis. Change starts in your borough!