SENIOR Government minister Michael Gove has sung the praises of Poundbury in a recent speech.

Mr Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, was speaking at Centre for Policy Studies’ annual Margaret Thatcher Conference.

During the speech he hailed the core tenants of 'beauty, infrastructure, democracy, environment and neighbourhood' in order to build public support for new developments. 

He denied planning reform was 'dead' and said it was “absolutely vital” to understand why previous efforts to change planning laws had “foundered”.

Mr Gove said many new developments lacked a sense of being a “neighbourhood”, having been built without facilities such as pubs and shops, and praised Poundbury, an urban development near Dorchester, for providing such facilities.

He said: “If we do make sure that in the planning reforms we are bringing forward, people understand that new homes will be beautiful, they will be accompanied by infrastructure, there will be democratic decision-making, there will be environmental enhancement and that we are creating new neighbourhoods, then we can build new homes and additional infrastructure that this country needs to power the growth to which all of us are committed.”