The leader of a Surrey council has written a strongly-worded letter to housing minister Rachel Maclean after she used her powers to block the withdrawal of its local plan. 

Cllr Joanne Sexton, Spelthorne Borough Council’s independent group leader, has written to Maclean describing her intervention as “unreasonable and unacceptable” and highlighting the “chaos and mixed messaging” in government over housing policy. 

The councillor’s letter follows a letter from Maclean to the council last week exercising the levelling up secretary’s intervention powers under section 27 of the 2004 Planning and Compulsory Act to order Spelthorne not to withdraw its local plan.