Key figures in creation of Milton Keynes criticise UK’s new towns plan

Exclusive: Planners behind postwar new towns hit out at government over lack of ambition and commitment to social housing

Senior planners involved in building the country’s postwar new towns have raised concerns about the government’s new towns programme, criticising a lack of ambition and insufficient commitment to social housing.

Lee Shostak, former director of planning at Milton Keynes Development Corporation (MKDC) in the 1970s and later chair of the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), said the current plan for the new towns may not help people who need homes the most.