''Risky'' to invest in land

Greenbelt land can be a risky investment because it is not yet known whether the government will relax the restrictions which prohibit property development on it, according to one expert.

Inside Track, a group specialising in property investment advice, says that despite suggestions that the government is reconsidering its greenbelt policy, there is no guarantee that this will happen.

Pierre Williams, from Inside Track, said: "There is a certain element of gamble.

"If a developer believes that there is an unworthy piece of greenbelt and that this will be seen as such and it will be de-listed by regional planning authorities, then they may well have made a good decision."

But he added that it is very difficult indeed to get any reversal of greenbelt protection, which makes such investments risky.

This comes on the same day as research published by the Guardian and the Campaign to Protect Rural England which suggests that government housing targets threaten around 10,000 acres of greenbelt protected land in the UK.


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