Hazel Blears calls for green belt rules to be scrapped to pave the way for more housing

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Rules to protect the countryside should be torn up so more homes can be built on green belt land, the Government said yesterday.

The decision by Communities Secretary Hazel Blears means that planners will be pressured to begin 'selective reviews' of areas protected from development.

The move comes just a year after Gordon Brown promised MPs that 'we will continue robustly to protect' green belt land.

In a report, Mrs Blears said that 662,500 homes must be built in the South East by 2026, an increase of 14 per cent over the most intensive development local councillors wanted to accept.

The housing push is likely to be repeated soon when major planning decisions are taken elsewhere in the country.

Ministers say new housing must be built to cope with the demands of a growing population - with as many of 40 per cent of new homes expected to be needed to cope with the predicted influx of immigrants.

Tory communities spokeman Eric Pickles said: 'Labour Ministers are giving the green light to green belt destruction.

'I am concerned that this will lead to unsustainable urban sprawl, extra congestion, higher carbon emissions and more flooding, harming people's quality of life.'