Campaigners say developments do not meet local needs

A spokesman said there appeared to be a "reluctance" to "rein in" developers.

Campaigners questioned whether the homes being built were affordable and met local needs.

The CPRE said Warwickshire already had enough land committed to meet its housing requirement for the next five and a half years - more than any other shire county.

The level of building in urban areas was patchy, with Birmingham, Coventry and Solihull exceeding their targets but the Black Country falling short, it said.

We must move more quickly to reduce housing levels in the shires and direct new houses to meeting local needs Gerald Kells CPRE West Midlands

The 2004 Regional Planning Guidance was introduced with the goal of reducing housing levels in the shires and encouraging more housing in the conurbation.

Gerald Kells of CPRE West Midlands said: "We anticipated that there would be some housing proposals still passing through the system and that it would take a while for authorities to rein in the developers, but there appears to be a reluctance to do so.

"If we are serious about creating a sound basis for urban regeneration and protecting the countryside, we must move more quickly to reduce housing levels in the shires and direct new houses to meeting local needs.

"This would make a vital contribution to stimulating urban house building."

Conservative local government spokeswoman Caroline Spelman blamed the government for the high rate of development, saying Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott's plans were "environmentally unsustainable".

"Only the Conservatives have pledged to abolish the Communities Plan, scrap his regional housing building targets and let local people have their say on local developments," she said.