While there is much to agree with in Cllr Nick Craker's piece in December 13, Cornish Times there is one crucial point of detail that can be disagreed with in the way that he put it.

He said, 'Cornwall needs homes'. No one disputes that but the fact that we have 35,000 empty or under used properties with an increasing number of second homes mean that we are not using our housing stock in the most efficient way to ensure homes for local working people.

According to Department of Communities and Local Government figures Cornwall has had a staggering extra almost 60,000 new homes built here in the last 20 years (37,000 during the Council's Local Plan period since 2010) yet homelessness is continuing to rise and now stands at over 25,000.

So we clearly cannot just build our way out of a housing crisis. Underused and unused properties are part of the solution and there are many spaces within town centres and above retail shop fronts which could be used for new homes. Helping at the same time support town vitality and sustainable local job creation in construction.

Since 2010/11 Cornwall's population has grown by about 65,000 - all from net migration from elsewhere in England. Cornwall now has one of the highest allocations for housing in the Government's new National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) of 89,000 - despite that fact we will not be able to create enough 'good' well paid jobs to sustain the implication of a population in excess of 800,000 by 2050.

Population growth has never brought economic growth for Cornwall and we are already seeing development encroach on the edge of our natural assets - so important for food production (one in four Cornish jobs), biodiversity, tourism and good mental and physical health.

Stephen Horscroft

Vice chair, Cornwall CPRE