The government said the homes were needed by 2021 to meet regional needs.

But planners at the East of England Regional Assembly (EERA) said the government needed to guarantee the funding for roads and other works.

If the funding did not keep pace with the expansion the plans for new homes would be delayed, EERA said.

Traffic problems

Adrian Cannard, EERA's head of planning and housing, told BBC News that if the "government wants growth it has got to be prepared to deliver the infrastructure".

He said if the investment in roads did not go hand-in-hand with the increase in the number of homes across the East the "significant traffic problems in the region will be exacerbated".

Mr Cannard said that some planning applications for homes would be rejected by local authorities if the roads nearby were not able to cope with the increase in traffic.

He said it was also vital that councils across the East of England - which includes Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk - get extra funding for education and social services to help them cope with the increases in population.

The government said it was still consulting over the draft plan for the East of England and would respond following the consultation.