A PUBLIC meeting will take place in Hatfield tonight (Monday) over the future of housing in the county.

People are being asked to give their views about how many homes Hertfordshire should accommodate over the next 20 years.

The East of England Regional Assembly – already told by the High Court to go back to the drawing board over its plans for Times Territory’s Green Belt – is proposing between 75,000 and 107,000 homes for Hertfordshire between 2011 and 2031.

This does NOT include developments of 30,000 properties north of Harlow and 5,500 homes east of Luton – both of which would actually be in our county.

Now Welwyn Hatfield borough councillor Mandy Perkins, who also sits on EERA, is encouraging residents to come along to the public consultation event.

It takes place at 6.30pm in the Fielder Centre, on Hatfield Business Park.

Cllr Perkins said: “The consultation will shape the next stage of planning; several scenarios will be put forward for discussion based on current figures.

“This is your chance to get involved and have your say on the future of your county, and Welwyn Hatfield in particular.

“It’s really important that as many people as possible attend this consultation and make their views known.”

The consultation is free to attend but due to space in the Fielder Centre it is necessary to book your place. This can be done online at http://events.eera.gov.uk/eventdetails.aspx?id=932

* The EERA consultation runs until November 24. Find out more and have your say at www.eera.gov.uk