The recent actions by the coalition Government, without any opposition from Labour, regarding the abolition of planning restrictions appears to have been made to instil growth in the economy, but the idea that allowing householders to extend their homes without submitting plans is beyond belief.

If there is no-one responsible to peruse what is being built, then the object of building regulations to ensure that buildings are properly constructed makes a mockery of the whole scheme.

All the main parties appear to consider the prospect of building 400,000 new homes in the next 10 to 15 years will solve the housing problem. The expected growth of the population by 2020 will be 71 million, and by 2030 could be in the region of 75 million. I would like to know how the country would cope, where would the industry come from? Nobody appears to know how much affordable housing will cost or what the rent would be charged by housing trusts. Listening to the party conference speeches, I was taken by surprise when Ed Balls stated that the £3 billion windfall from licences for new communication systems would build a million new houses. I assume that as each house would cost £30,000, how much will they finally cost when they come to be sold?

To cap it all, the television showed the flooding in Northwich, and a Waterway official informed us that the River Weaver required dredging but they had failed to do so because they had no money for projects of this nature. That says it all!

JOHN OLIVER Hartford