MONMOUTHSHIRE County Council has released its proposals for house building over the next 10 years.

The plans are going to have a huge impact, with over 2,000 extra homes being built on top of the 3,700 which are currently underway.

Hundreds of new houses are planned for Abergavenny, nearly 1,000 in Caldicot and another 145 in Chepstow. Given the growing population levels, there is clearly a need to build more homes. However, there is something missing from the council’s strategy - a plan for how people will travel to and from work once those homes are built. The Welsh Labour Government, which sets housing targets, has also blocked the construction of any new roads.

There is a reluctance to even consider small improvements to the existing road structure. Chepstow is regularly gridlocked at busy times with poor air quality on Hardwick Hill because ministers in Cardiff Bay will not support a bypass for “environmental” reasons. The extra 1,000 houses for Caldicot will mean even more traffic jams on our often-congested motorway around Newport. The solution is an M4 relief road.

The UK Government has offered help with financing this but after spending an astonishing £157m of taxpayers’ money drawing up plans and buying land to build it, Welsh Labour abandoned the idea due to its “impact” on the environment.

The 500 houses planned for Abergavenny will similarly cause more traffic as many of those moving in will be commuting elsewhere. We need houses but we also need roads so residents can get to and from work without sitting in traffic jams.

After a delay in recruiting project managers, I am pleased to hear Natural Resources Wales (NRW) now has an experienced team in place who will build on the initial assessment study completed to date for flood prevention measures in Skenfrith. Feasible schemes suggested at this stage are property level protection or some form of wall/embankment around the village.

I understand the team has already begun work and it is hoped to procure a specialist consultant in early spring, with key stakeholders and residents being further consulted on possible flood defence options later in the year. All being well, the Strategic Outline Case will be completed around April 2024.

It is a long and protracted process, but we have taken another important step forward in the right direction. I have updated the Skenfrith community and look forward to receiving periodic progress reports from NRW.