REGIONAL planners have denied trying to sway public opinion in favour of controversial plans that could result in hundreds of thousands more homes being built in Kent and the south east.

A senior county councillor says a public consultation leaflet to be sent to every household in Kent later this month by the South East England Regional Assembly (SEERA) is skewed in favour of building more homes.

Conservative KCC councillor Keith Ferrin said the leaflet showed SEERA was more concerned to ensure it met the Government’s agenda for a huge expansion of house-building than addressing the concerns of residents in the region.

The assembly is asking for the public’s views about its 20-year house-building strategy. These views will be significant in determining which of the three options in the strategy SEERA decides to back. The options are for 25,500 homes a year; 28,000 homes – the current level, and for 32,000 homes – a higher level.

Cllr Ferrin said a draft of the leaflet and questionnaire going to more than three million homes did not adequately address the issue of the need for more investment in roads, schools, health services and other facilities.

He also criticised it for suggesting the options for growth were “modest” when one – for 32,000 homes a year - was signficantly above the Government’s own exsiting plans.

“There are certain questions in there which appear to offer opinions. It is not a fair or reasonable consultation document and I have no doubt that it is designed to produce a result SEERA wants – and that is clearly to have even more houses,” said Cllr Ferrin.

The introduction to SEERA’s consultation document states: “We risk damaging the economy if businesses cannot find the staff they need to be successful...we also risk losing teachers, nurses or firefighters if a shortage of homes pushes prices up so high they cannot afford to stay in the south east.”

A spokeswoman for SEERA denied the consultation leaflet was designed to sway opinion in favour of more homes. If there were any issues raised, we will have addressed them in our final version and if anyone was unhappy about the questionnaire, we have put those views forward.”

Leaflets about the plans will begin to land on doorsteps in early February as part of a wide-ranging consultation that will last for two months.

SEERA will reach a final decision sometime in July.