A Conservative MP has claimed that garden cities such as Welwyn Garden City and Letchworth are the answer to the UK's housing crisis.

In a piece for the Daily Mail title "Are Garden cities the solution to tackle the housing crisis?", Graham Norwood looks at why you should be considering making a move to one of these spacious, green towns.

Conservative MP David Davis is quoted in the story, stating his belief that building new, small settlements - rather than more homes in exisiting towns - could be the answer to the lack of homes in the UK.

"Building entirely new settlements — especially smaller ones of around 3,000 homes each — will not meet the same opposition as adding more homes to existing towns," he said.

"Building new settlements allows us to design in a way that minimises so-called 'not in my back yard' opposition."

But what did Norwood think of our garden cities, Welwyn Garden City and Letchworth?

Welwyn Garden City

"Founded by Ebenezer Howard, this was called The Perfect Town when it was launched in the 1920s," he wrote.

"It's famed for wide grass areas near roads, an attractive green 'parkway' in the centre, and a large red brick shop built in 1939 as the Welwyn Department Store — now run by John Lewis.

"Its proximity to London - roughly 40 minutes by train - and nearby film and TV studios mean the town, known as WGC to locals, has more than a little stardust."

Letchworth

"Many of the older houses here have substantial gardens of up to a quarter of an acre," said Norwood.

"The airy feel of Letchworth is thanks to plenty of mature trees and green open spaces, culminating in Norton Common just north of the centre."

Jonathan Charter, of local estate agency Charter Whyman, is also quoted as saying: "This combination of thoughtful layout, good design and quality of construction explains the continuing appeal of Garden City living. 

"And it's only a 29-minute train ride from King's Cross."