The answer? You re-brand it by calling it an eco-town, and hope all the environmentalists will come on board and at least some of the objections will disappear.

This is part of the great con-job being rolled out by the government to persuade us that creating a series of eco-towns will be a great thing for Britain.

One of the sites suggested for an eco-town is Ford aerodrome, which may be designated a brownfield site, but in my book it's 90 per cent unspoiled countryside.

Into this pleasant land could go between 5,000 to 20,000 new homes. Yuk!
The government tell us that these new homes will all be eco-friendly, with, according to the jargon, "the development as a whole to achieve zero carbon and to be an exemplar in at least one area of environment technology".

What on earth is all this about? The government should ensure that every new home built is zero-carbon. If an eco-town is to be what it is cracked up to be, it should have its own wind turbines, and every house should have solar panels on the roofs, too.

But I bet they won't, that will be far too expensive!

Now let's look at another piece of the government jargon: Eco-towns should be "places with a separate and distinct identity but (with] good links to surrounding towns and cities in terms of jobs, transport and services".

Let's have a good laugh at this one. For an eco-town to be zero carbon, none if its inhabitants should have or use a car. Can you imagine for one moment that the Ford eco-town will be car-less?

Just imagine up to 20,000 people using the already congested Ford road into Arundel trying to get past the cars which are always parked outside homes, and just imagine their impact on the A259.

And heaven help us when all those extra cars hit the A27, trying to get around Arundel.

We haven't heard the government rushing to bring forward the much-needed Arundel by-pass or a by-pass around Worthing.

As for any improvement for the A27 at Worthing, it now looks increasingly likely we will get an upgrade of the existing route by stealth.

Remember, this was the project which was roundly rejected when the public were last asked their views.

Remember how the public were conned then when they were asked to choose between a through route and two by-pass schemes.

This successfully split the vote for the by-pass option and resulted in no clear-cut choice. This allowed the government off the hook and so they did nothing.

Now the talk is to "upgrade" the various junctions and help sort out bottlenecks.

We're likely to see an A27 bridge over Offington roundabout and junction improvements at Lyons Farm, and through traffic still thundering through the northern outskirts of the town. Terrific.

Take a look at the Guildford by-pass and see what it means!
So, here's an alternative housing plan for the government...try to reduce the need for so many new homes, much of which is for singles, by positively encouraging the family unit.

The restoration of the married persons' tax allowance and re-arranging benefits so as to make it less advantageous to have more and more children might help.

Europe-wide amber alert for kids needed

It beggars belief that in Europe, only France and Greece have an "amber alert" system for missing children.

With all the legislation and "twaddle" coming out of Europe, it's amazing that the EC hasn't got to grips with this one.

People are travelling across Europe and holidaying abroad more and responsible parents need to have the reassurance that if the worst happens, police, the media and transport companies are alerted instantly.

It makes me wonder whether little Madeleine would have been found quickly if such an alert system was in place.

I wish her parents success in their bid to get sensible co-operation between all European countries.
It's amazing that this wasn't in place years ago.