I've now formally submitted my objection to the proposed St Mary Cray green belt development. The proposal to build around 350 homes on farmland south of Crockenhill Road is wrong — in principle and in practice.  My objection covers the following:  The land is not so called “grey belt”. It hasn’t been developed and doesn’t even meet the government’s own definition.  Local roads are narrow and unsuitable for major construction traffic.  GP surgeries, schools and local infrastr

Housebuilding has fallen consistently in London over the last decade. The government’s response? To cut Sadiq Khan’s targets by 11% while jacking up targets for outer London authorities. I asked the Housing Secretary why people in Bromley should pay the price for the Mayor of London’s failure.

A developer wants to build a new housing estate on Strawberry Fields in Darwin Ward.  It is green belt land.  Their early proposals would see 650 homes as well as a care home and a community centre.  There isn’t a formal planning application yet but the developer has already been in conversation with the council about submitting one.  I joined Paul Marshall from the Aperfield Green Belt Action Group to hear about the grave consequences this would have on local people living h

A developer is eyeing up Strawberry Fields in Darwin Ward  for a major housing development on protected green belt land. Early plans point to 650 homes, plus a care home and a community centre — this would dramatically alter the character of the area put massive strain on infrastructure. There’s no formal planning application yet, but the developer is already in discussions with the council about bringing one forward. I met with neighbouring MP Peter Fortune to talk through t

Labour is failing dismally at building houses.  They have delivered fewer homes in their first year of office than the previous Conservative government had during the global pandemic.  Now they are ignoring the voices of local people across the country (in places like St Mary Cray, Chelsfield and Darwin Ward), and imposing top down targets disproportionately in rural areas.  They are coming after our green belt — and residential gardens. More in my Commons statement below.

A formal planning application has now been submitted to build 350 homes on farming land just south of Crockenhill Road in St Mary Cray.  If approved, this will irreversibly damage our green belt and permanently change the character of our area. Time is tight. We must act now.  Please submit your objection via Bromley Council. Link here . 🗓️Deadline: 19/01/2026 📋 Application number: 25/05427/OUT I will also be formally objecting to the plans and writing my response over Chri

I hope the Chancellor has been listening to what struggling families and businesses have been saying. Today, she can choose to turn the tide on rising unemployment, stubborn inflation and record borrowing — with serious control of public spending, sensible savings, and tax cuts that actually stimulate growth. More in my latest News Shopper column .

126,000 jobs have gone since the last Budget — and the next one is in 6 days. Families and businesses in Orpington fear more tax hikes to cover unchecked spending. The Conservative Party has come up with another way. The Chancellor can still change course — and steal our homework. Will she?

This week, the Chancellor gave a panicked press conference in which she all but confirmed that more tax rises are on the way in this month’s Budget, breaking a promise she made 30 times since the last budget.    In Orpington, local businesses are telling me that they are being forced to freeze recruitment and expansion plans because of increasing costs.    The Chancellor claims that she needs higher taxes to pay for the NHS. Yet new ONS figures show NHS productivity is fallin

Last week, police raided Orpington’s Cash Converters for selling stolen goods including speakers, earphones and beauty products. This was part of a bigger operation which targeted retailers selling stolen goods — thousands of pounds of items were seized, multiple arrests were made, and a number of stores are now facing closure. I believe four arrests were made at the Orpington Cash Converters raid. This work is testament to Bromley’s Neighbourhood Policing Superintendent Luke

In this week’s News Shopper, I write about two properly thought through Conservative Party policies that will make life better for people in Orpington: abolishing stamp duty and business rates.  Stamp duty is a bad tax. Getting rid of it will  help young people get onto the housing ladder, growing families to move somewhere bigger, and older people who might want to downsize. Crucially, it will get the market moving again and free up much needed space.  As for business rates,

Sadiq Khan is failing on building affordable homes in Greater London. The previous government awarded him almost £9 billion to build 151,000 affordable homes. The second tranche of this money consisted of £4 billion for building 35,000 homes between 2021 and end March 2026. To date only 997 have been completed. The figures say it all: the Mayor’s housing record has been dismal during his time in office. And because of his failings, he has now abandoned all of his promised gre

The government is consumed by national debt, infighting and scandal — and their answer? Mandatory ID cards.  I am strongly opposed to...

My latest column for the News Shopper is on the Conservative Party's properly thought through policies to tackle illegal immigration. 29,000 illegal immigrants have crossed the Channel so far this year — the worst year ever and up 38% on the previous 12 months. This is despite Keir Starmer's election promise to "smash the gangs". One of the big mistakes his government made was cancelling the Rwanda deterrent. Meanwhile, the Conservative Party have laid out clear and workable

We now have a government that wants to build on the green belt, and the Mayor of London has U-turned on his previous position about...

St Mary Cray residents Peitra and Charlotte joined me on farming land by Crockenhill Road where a developer wants to build a major...

St Mary Cray is just one site in Orpington where developers are looking at building a major housing scheme on green belt land. There is...

The Mayor of London and TfL are looking at whacking up the Congestion Charge by 20% from £15 to £18. (And it seems they are planning on...

The Assisted Dying Bill has passed its third reading and will now go to the Lords.  After months of listening to medical experts and...

Last week I visited Heathrow Airport to see Virgin Atlantic’s operations. It was a good opportunity to hear from staff and get a feel for...