AT the moment, there is a proposal to build about 2,500 homes on what is termed low-grade agricultural land in Tendring. Also, more at St Osyth and Holland-on-Sea, and yet more on top, if you count in the social housing Tendring is looking at. At the moment, this country cannot feed its own populace with the agricultural land that is available.

So any development on agricultural land, low grade or otherwise, is a loss of resources to grow food.

MP Douglas Carswell says the decision has to be made locally as to whether Tendring builds 6,100 homes or 4,100 homes. So already we have the start of figures in mind.

These figures are only the start. For any number, say 26,000 over the next one or two decades, think of doubling that, then you might get a truer picture.

Tendring could be really be brave and say no to any new housing development.

It would then be really interesting to see how quickly national Government would quash this idea.

As it is, we're already in the absurd position by which agricultural land is set aside and paid for by the EU for wildlife.

But perhaps this is the get-out clause that Tendring could use, and call it let’s say, an educational resource to show what wildlife would be vanishing from this area.

With our own country heading to a population of 70 million and the world population of seven billion, governments are going to have to tackle the very real problem of population growth.

A V Holmes
Meadow Way
Jaywick