Expansion plans for Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes is a purpose-built, 'new city' in South East England. It is located about 45 miles (75 km) north west of London and approximately midway between Oxford and Cambridge. With other towns it forms the unitary authority of the Borough of Milton Keynes.
Newport Pagnell
The modern civil parish of Newport Pagnell stops at the M1, but the ecclesiastical parish extends to include Broughton and Caldecote. The parish church is dedicated to St Peter and St Paul.
The alternative rock band, The Smiths mentions the town's name in their song "Is it Really So Strange" from the album Louder Than Bombs.
Although Newport Pagnell is outside the (1967) designated area of Milton Keynes, its growth has been at a similar level to that of the constituent towns of the latter; the two now join at the M1 and there is little distinction between them. The Office for National Statistics regards Newport Pagnell as part of the Milton Keynes Urban Area. Its population in 1971 was 6,000: by 2001 it had reached 15,020. The Borough Council projects that the population will remain broadly stable at this level. However, in its comments on the expansion plans for Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire County Council challenges this assumption, calling for any further expansion to be to the east of the M1 rather than south across the border into Aylesbury Vale.