Every Year More People Die in West Dorset than are Born
Yes, more people die here than are born and yet the Office of National Statistics notes that the population of west Dorset is set to increase every year. How on earth can that happen? It is because we have a large amount of in-migration here. Every year. Mainly from London and the south east. People coming to retire here. Lots and lots of them with the result that …Bridport has 70% more people over 65 than the national average. Nothing wrong in that, but there have got to be limits. Meanwhile countless young people on low incomes in Bridport can only dream of buying a home here at current market prices. These are our people, Bridport’s own people, far too many living in housing poverty. There are currently over 250 households in Bridport on the Housing Register which means that they are either homeless or in unsuitable accommodation. In Bridport. Is that acceptable in our prosperous modern society?
Meanwhile, West Dorset District Council have decided that 500 new homes for sale are to be built on Vearse Farm in Bridport. Will that help? Who will buy them? The simple fact is that everyone in Bridport who can afford to buy a home in Bridport has already got one. So, who will buy all these new ones? The likelihood is that the lion’s share of these new homes on Vearse Farm will be bought by affluent incoming retirees. A good number will be bought as holiday homes as well. We already know that the so-called affordable rented homes on Vearse Farm will probably be too expensive for over half our population. So the point of the 500 homes to be built for sale in Bridport is what, exactly? Answers on a post card please. Addressed to West Dorset District Council.
Roy Mathisen,
Bridport
