"Monmouth has suffered from flooding issues in recent years and to build houses on sites which will have similar problems doesn't make sense." Councillor Richard Bond

Members of Monmouth Town Council's Planning Committee travelled to County Hall on Monday to protest against proposals in the Local Development Plan (LDP), which they believe could permanently damage the character of Monmouth.

The LDP, which is currently out for consultation, sets out proposals to build 821 new houses in Monmouth before 2021; 400 of these will be on new sites on the edge of town.

The Town Council believes that without a dramatic investment in the infrastructure, such as the sewage treatment plant and parking facilities, the character of Monmouth would be permanently damaged.

"Most of the sites are on the flood plain and are also subject to flooding from run off from adjacent hills," said the Town Council's Planning Committee Chairman, Cllr Richard Bond.

"Monmouth has suffered from flooding issues in recent years and to build houses on sites which will have similar problems doesn't make sense.

"Monmouthshire requires a total of 1,810 new sites and the Town Council is concerned that over 20% are proposed for Monmouth, which has just 10% of the population of Monmouthshire.

"It is a large lump of houses, and we feel that we're getting rather more than our fair share," said Cllr Bond.