People, there is another reason why we need to push ahead with this project.
UK population is growing and changing, because our average demographic is getting older (some thanks for that ought to go to our NHS, for better treatments etc).
We either need more immigration, to source the workers to care for our retired citizens, or we need to work until we are 70+. Fancy doing that?
Both of these futures will increase the demand on finite resources, not just consumables, but space to live in. There is a Climate Emergency (most Councils in South-West Herts have recognised this) and we need to re-design the way we live. We need to do all the “reduce, re-use, recycle” things and this includes the need to use limited space most effectively, for infrastructure, as well as transport, jobs and housing.
District and Borough “Local Plans” are the process by which we try to allocate space. These are usually updated every five years and look around 20 years into the future. Councils, in the south-east certainly, are driven to prioritise housing, in order to fend-off Developers who could otherwise use the Courts to progress their plans.
To ensure that hospital facilities not only keep up with current demand but to keep pace with future population increases as a result of additional housing plans, we need to achieve the following :-
- A NEW hospital that is designed for 600,000 plus people located near the population growth areas.
- A hospital which employs people efficiently and thus helps to reduce our need for population-growth via immigration, and means that people can instead provide other services that we also need.
- A hospital that you can easily reach via low-carbon, congestion-lowering public transport.
- A hospital that is energy-efficient from the foundations up.
- A hospital where sick and injured people can recover, surrounded by greenery.
- A hospital that uses protected “Wildlife Corridors” to permanently separate the settlements of St. Albans, Watford, Abbotts Langley, Bedmond and Hemel Hempstead.
So, Local Plan? Build it here, a cornerstone, for everyone.
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