Sir – Mr Kinory hardly paints an accurate picture by quoting selectively from previously already selected quotes attributed to me a month ago (Letters, September 11).

If he is really interested in my views, he should read the current Oxford Civic Society newsletter, Visions, freely available on our website. The fact is that the Green Belt legislation was put in place 65 years ago with limited objectives and in completely different circumstances. It now provides wholly inadequate protection for the landscape of our county and the setting of its beautiful towns and villages, let alone the city of Oxford itself.

 

It provides no protection at all to threatened green spaces inside the belt, or to the 75 per cent of the county not designated as Green Belt.

 

Furthermore, it does nothing to prevent development of roads, railways, car parks, stations, sewage works, pipelines, pylons, or even industrial development and solar farms in certain circumstances!

 

It does nothing to make the land accessible and enjoyable to the general public.  Across the country, 70 per cent of Green Belt is under industrial farming, so much of it contributes little or nothing to ecology or biodiversity.

 

If we really want to protect, and, indeed, enhance what is precious about the landscape, the setting of Oxford and all of the county’s towns and villages, there can be no substitute for detailed, consistent and properly co-ordinated planning of our built environment, our transport systems and all the open and green spaces in and around them, across the county.

 

Peter Thompson, Chairman, Oxford Civic Society