Two hundred and fifty attendees with a further fifty outside at the Brown Not Green Public Meeting on October 14th

It was a packed house at Chesham Town Hall for the Brown Not Green public meeting on Saturday October 14.  Two hundred and fifty attendees managed to squeeze into the crowded room with the majority lining the walls and sitting on the floor.  This was despite having laid out over one hundred chairs.   A further fifty were left straining to hear from the crammed staff kitchen area and corridor.  A few gave up with a view to watch the publicised YouTube video later.   You can read the published Press Release about the meeting here.

​The meeting was chaired by the Rt Hon Cheryl Gillan MP who was able to give all listening the official view from Government.  This was followed by a thorough update from Phillip Plato, representing the Brown Not Green (BNG) Campaign Group, on the status of the land to the North-East of Chesham that has been earmarked for removal from the Greenbelt.   He then went on to highlight the activities of the Brown Not Green Campaign and what they intend to do next.  A copy of his transcript can be found here.  The slides he used here.

This was followed up by a questions and answers session.  The first question was aimed at MP Cheryl Gillan, asked most poignantly by Phillip Plato,   He asked a question in response to a previous statement from a District Councillor that blamed the Government for the notion that Chiltern District were having to build houses on Greenbelt.  "Who in Central Government is insisting that councils have to build on Greenbelt?"   It was telling that the response was that this was not coming from Government.

Apologies to all those that were not able to get into the Town Hall to attend this meeting.  Despite always seeking larger venues than before for BNG meetings we always seem to need a bigger venue.  The first BNG meeting just under a year ago consisted of barely thirty local residents but as word spreads of how this proposal will affect all of Chesham, not just Lye Green, more people wish to get involved.

The good news is that this presentation was recorded and we expect to publish the YouTube video on this website in the next week or two for those that were unable to attend and those that wish to show the contents of this meeting to their local friends & family and to share on social media.   Watch this space.

In the meantime, please feel free to visit our Fundraising page.  We are fundraising, just in case, we need to take legal action against Chiltern District for wrongful removal of Greenbelt status.  We have a strong case and Chiltern may back down before then.  If funds are not used, all donations will be returned.  Any remaining balance of used funds will be returned on a pro rata basis.