Up to 60,000 acres of agricultural land within 16 miles of central London could be built on to reduce the housing shortage in the South East, according to a report published today.

A pamphlet for the think-tank Politeia argues that it would be better to build the houses that are needed in London and the South East where people want them, rather than in "growth areas" up to 70 miles from London, as planned by John Prescott.

Forum Response: British Property Federation

A spokeswoman for the BPF, said: "As the author suggests there is a sensible balance to be struck between providing homes where they are needed and developing on what is currently designated as greenbelt land. But such an approach should compliment, as opposed to being seen as an alternative, to delivering improvements in the planning system, together with a package of incentives, such as tax breaks, for further developing brownfield land.

"As an organisation we do not believe that development should proceed unchecked, but equally do not believe that green belt should be a forbidden subject. We have reached the point where we would all benefit from a sensible debate about what kind of green spaces we want in and around London, perhaps sacrificing some green belt in return for more open spaces close to peoples' homes.

"The author points to the large distance from central London of the growth areas identified in the Sustainable Communities Plan, but we should not fall into the trap of largely viewing these areas as dormitory towns for the London workforce. Instead, they must become sustainable communities in their own right and to do that have employment sites and other uses developed alongside homes.

"Whilst we broadly support the government's Sustainable Communities Plan, we are concerned by the lack of consideration given to transport issues that will arise from it. For it to be truly "sustainable", the government will need to fund, or in partnership with others quickly find the mechanisms to fund, the necessary range of transport infrastructure improvement pursuant to the Plan."

Forum Response: Countryside Alliance

A spokesman for the Countryside Alliance told ePolitix.com: "The Countryside Alliance reiterates what it has said in the past - the government should do far more to reduce the North-South divide, in terms of both economy and society. Massive investment and development in the South East, with little balancing investment in other areas of the country, can only increase this divide.

"If the UK is to be made up of 'sustainable communities', which both the deputy prime minister and the Alliance are keen to promote, then much more effort is needed to develop disadvantaged areas of the North and West to ensure that people can build a future for themselves in these regions. Pouring money into increased development in the already overcrowded and over-developed South East will simply exacerbate the problem.

Forum Response: Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors

A spokesman for RICS told ePolitix.com: "In seeking to accelerate housing development in London and the South East the government is likely to face many difficult choices over which areas to develop and will need to stand firm in the face of 'nimbyism'.

"There should always be a hierarchy of suitability for housing development: brownfield first, then green fringe, then green field. Given this equation, the area of land identified in this new research must be preferred to green field development in areas outside London. However, without accompanying investment in quality infrastructure then this new housing development will prove to be unsustainable in the long term."

Forum Response: Shelter

Alastair Jackson, director of policy at Shelter, said: "This report is a welcome and honest look at how the homes that so many Londoners desperately need can be delivered. Shelter believes current plans will not deliver the homes that are so desperately needed and end the current housing crisis in the capital that has left record numbers of homeless people - nearly 50,000 households - in temporary accommodation. There are also 200,000 households registered on London's council house waiting list and thousands more unable to afford a decent home.

"Many homes can be built on brownfield land, but as the report shows we will have to build some homes on greenfield sites. These homes must be built where they are needed - it makes sense practically, economically and for the people desperate for somewhere decent to live in London."