MP seeks people power to force finish to building works

Hull North MP Diana Johnson is calling for new powers enabling residents and councils to force the finishing of works to roads at the completion of building developments.

The call for a change in the law follows the Hull North MP's two and half year battle, alongside residents and councillors in Bransholme, for Whisperwood Way's road to be finished, after new homes were built four years ago.

Residents in the properties, which were completed in 2007, had to wait around four years until late 2011 for developers to finally finish the road leading to their properties.

Diana Johnson MP is now collecting names for a new petition to Parliament calling for legislation that would require developers to agree a timetable with local authorities for the full completion of all essential infrastructure work, such as roads, before starting a work on a new development.

The MP also wants a power for local authorities to use a deposit that would be paid to them in advance by the developer to complete themselves any work that is not finished according to this timetable.

Diana will start collecting names for the petition in Whisperwood Way on Saturday morning (28 January).

Diana Johnson MP said: "People should not have to go through all the inconvenience that Whisperwood Way residents did following the completion of their homes in 2007.

"It took them over four years to finally pressure a private developer into finishing the road serving this housing development. I was closely involved for two and a half years until we finally got the Whisperwood Way road finished.

"I'm now campaigning for a new legal requirement for developers to do works according to an agreed timetable and, if they fail, for the local authority to oversee the work instead from a deposit paid in advance by the developer.

"Either way, local people have a right to expect work to be finished in a timely fashion without having to spend months or years chasing the matter. It's a real weakness in the law that local people and their councils currently lack this power."