BRADFORD Council said '15-minute cities' are "often misrepresented" in a letter to an MP.

The correspondence was revealed through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request from the Telegraph & Argus to the local authority. 

The response shared with the T&A is understood to relate to a letter from Philip Davies, Conservative MP for Shipley on behalf of a constituent in Baildon. 

That letter was not included in the FOI response to the T&A, so the exact nature of the query raised by the constituent is not clear. 

Some people believe 15-minute cities are a conspiracy led by the World Economic Forum and the United Nations to use surveillance to limit travel.

A Council spokesperson told the MP:  "The 15-Minute cities concept is part of our general transportation thinking and planning, however, the idea is often misrepresented and subject to a number of theories relating to restriction of freedom of movement."

The spokesperson added: "In actual fact, the idea behind the concept is to attempt to ensure that residents can reach vital infrastructure/services (hospitals, dentists, shopping facilities etc) within 15 minutes of leaving their homes by the easiest means possible, be it walking, cycling or public transport without the need of a car.

"This is with a view to reducing short-hop journeys, easing traffic congestion and improving air quality.

"Obviously, people who wish to travel further would still be free to do so at their own volition in accordance with basic human rights.

"I trust the above provides sufficient reassurance around the matter."

The issue has been in the spotlight at the Tory party conference this week. 

Transport Secretary Mark Harper said English councils could be blocked from fining drivers under a crackdown on the “misuse of so-called 15-minute cities”.

Speaking from the main stage of the Tory party conference, the Cabinet minister announced the Government will review its powers to prevent “overzealous use of traffic management” as part of its Plan for Drivers.

Mr Harper said: “I’m calling time on the misuse of so-called 15-minute cities.

“There’s nothing wrong with making sure people can walk or cycle to the shops or school, that’s traditional town planning.

“But what is different, what is sinister and what we shouldn’t tolerate is the idea that local councils can decide how often you go to the shops, and that they ration who uses the road and when, and they police it all with CCTV.

“So today, I am announcing that the Government will investigate what options we have in our toolbox to restrict overzealous use of traffic management measures including cutting off councils from the DVLA database if they don’t follow the rules.”

The Department for Transport’s (DfT) Plan For Drivers document stated that it would “stop local authorities using so-called 15-minute cities to police people’s lives”.

It added that a consultation would be held on removing local authorities’ access to DVLA data if they sought to “enforce such schemes by camera”.