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Andrew,As I posted previously the main thrust of the LDF process is building a prosperous economy. Presently Dover cannot support extensive & quality retail & leisure with its current economic profile. Part of the reason for that is the population is too small & poorly paid to attract private sector interest.Dover is the bottom 5% of GVA[gross valued added] in the South East. Pre-war there were approx 41,000 people living in urban Dover now that number is around 29,000. The rest have leeched away to other locations. Dover's private sector housing is assessed as some of the worst in the South East & its geography mitigates against further housing development without taking out brown field sites ,which are already identified for development in the LDF.The object of the LDF is to increase Dover's population opportunities by concentrating housing in & around Dover in an attempt to redress the balance. The business parks & port jobs are in Dover & located around the outskirts of Dover & therefore make sustainable development opportunities more likely to occur. There is a government requirement to make development align with employment sites, primarily to deliver local job opportunities but also reduce travel times & carbon footprints. Training aschemes are currently being put into place to take up future employment patterns, around construction ,maritime & marine occupations together with eco & environmental technologies.You mention Aylesham as a location to take more housing. That is a good point & the local plan has identified 1000-1200 new dwellings there. The plannning application is now being worked on. The area is on the outskirts of Dover District & adjoins Canterbury City Council boundaries. It is regarded as having the potential to lose trade to Canterbury because of its closeness & road & rail connections. Canterbury City Council sees Aylesham as an overspill opportunity for them.Deal is another location for development but is constrained by flood innundation issues & draws blanks from the Environment Agency when potential Deal sites are discussed. Other constraints around Deal are to do with Environmental designations that preclude housing development. When you add the appalling A258 to both Sandwich & Dover [with its horrendous death rates] transport links come into play. The sustainable development theory cannot be readily played at Deal because it has little employment base to offer its population. Deal is essentially the dormitory town of Dover. This is evidenced each morning & evening with trails of slow moving or stationary traffic from Walmer to the Jubilee Way & reverse.Capel could have been looked at & indeed has offered & been allocated increased numbers but that primarily benefits Folkestone retail because of its proximity.Village allocation across the District has been justified by parishes & environmental designations.Finally we live in a District that is rich in heritage, natural beauty & has internationally known landmarks & environmental designations. These factors which are our strengths are also restrictive factors when applied to planning & the STOP powers of the quangos that control them.With the above factors particularly trying to establish economic growth for the town & people of Dover , Whitfield, the LDF working group, concluded was the only logical & unfettered by too many environmental contraints location to house the future of Dover's economy.I would recommend that you read this posting together with the work force demographics that I posted earlier.This , I know, is not the explaination you want to see but I hope you will appreciate a logic to the thread.Sorry for the long delay but technical issues & time have conspired against me.As a foot note to Andy Stevens ,an increased population could fill Crabble over & over.Watty