West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin has today welcomed Government plans to help to speed up the approval of local plans. The announcement was made as it was confirmed that the South Worcestershire Development Plan which will undergo a further round of consultation this month. The latest version of the plan is now out for public comment until November 20 and the responses will then be considered by Planning Inspector Roger Clews. Last week the Government announced that it has created an expert group to look into how to speed up the approval of local plans. The SWDP has undergone a series of revisions since first being approved by Malvern Hills and Wychavon District Councils and Worcester City Council nearly three years ago. Harriett commented: “Our local councillors have made great strides committing to an ambitious plan which will allow for development of both new houses and employment land in the right places. “I am glad that South Worcestershire local plan continues to work its way through the system but this process has simply been too long. “Three local councils democratically approved the plan in December 2012 and it strikes me as ridiculous that so much time and money has gone into a lengthy examination process by bureaucrats since then. “We all want to see an end to this process and anything that the Government can do to speed up it up must be welcomed. I hope that by the time comes to update our own local plan, the process will be far simpler. “I’ve been keen to encourage smaller communities who want to develop their own Neighbourhood Plan to press on and I hope that the process will be simplified for them too.”