There are few certainties in life. Death and taxes are two of them. The unwisdom of upsetting the Women’s Institute may be a third.

Eleven years ago, popular Prime Minister Tony Blair was visibly shocked when his feel-good speech to 10,000 members of the National Federation of Women’s Institutes resulted in slow-handclapping and jeering – some even walked out. The speech, they said, was too long and contravened the WI’s non-party political policy.

Now it’s the turn of David Cameron and Nick Clegg. The WI has asked members to lobby the Coalition Government’s proposals about its new draft National Planning Policy Framework, in particular the part about favouring ‘sustainable development’.

WI chairman Ruth Bond says: “It’s not a call to arms, but a call to the pen, a call to discussion and conversation around where you live... there will be lots of people in villages who don’t know anything about this.”

After years of eco-consciousness, why on earth is the WI urging its members to support the National Trust and the Campaign to Protect Rural England in handbagging councillors and MPs on this issue?

Sara Mogford, chairman of Baildon WI, says: “Traditionally, the WI has supported organisations like the National Trust. Some of our members are involved with BRAID, the Buck Lane action group. Others understand that we need jobs and business in the area.”

With 109 members, the Baildon WI is one of the largest such groups in the North. Sara said the planning framework would almost certainly be on the agenda for the group’s next montly meeting at St John’s Church Hall next Thursday.

Anticipating public opposition, the Government’s Communities and Local Government Office has published a 12-point ‘Myth-buster’ rebuttal, seeking to offer assurances, including: * planning blueprints won’t be imposed from above * communities will be given new power to protect locally important green spaces * the presumption in favour of sustainable development won’t mean wind turbines everywhere * legislation will remove top-down pressure on councils to build on Green Belt sites * the Planning Inspectorate has not been instructed to covertly obey the draft Framework.

Sara says: “I think the issue is people just don’t believe the Government will look after the Green Belt. People are sceptical, especially round here, where you see so many disused factories.”

The Prime Minister seems to have picked up on the WI, as he has written to the National Trust offering them assurances about the Green Belt.

Bradford South MP Gerry Sutcliffe, Minister for Sport under the last Labour Government, is not convinced. For him, the draft proposals are too wide-ranging as they stand, and will favour developers because housing and planning minister Grant Schapps has publicly stated that he wants more houses built.

Mr Sutcliffe says: “The issue that I intend to raise in Parliament is there are no safeguards in the proposals to protect playing fields. In 2009, I introduced legislation to protect small green public spaces. I think this should be extended to private playing fields.”

The playing field he has in mind is at Paradise Green, Clayton, home to Fields Sports and Social Club and up to ten football teams, but one of the six sites shortlisted by Bradford Council for waste management.

“It’s an example of the type of thing we need to guard against. With the Olympic Games coming next year, the intention was to get more people involved in outdoor activities. The target was two million more by 2012. The Government has dropped that target. We are starting to see the selling off of playing fields again,” he added.

This week, the T&A reported on the continuing battle by campaigners to protect Green Belt in the Tong and Fulneck areas being considered for the construction of 2,700 homes.

Gordon Dey, associate chairman of Save Tong And Fulneck Valley, said: “We are quite concerned that local people do not understand the scale of what is being proposed, and the way in which Holme Wood is to be hugely expanded.”

Public meetings are planned for October 15 and 17 – the latter, coincidentally, is also the last day of public consultation on the Government’s draft planning framework.