Scrap the Green Belt to Save the Planet

I was cycling through the countryside last weekend and saw all these fields just sitting empty, it got me thinking about how we use land in this country. We've got a housing crisis and people can't afford to live anywhere, but at the same time we're not allowed to build on huge swaths of land because of the Green Belt. It's like we're prioritizing some idealized notion of rural England over actual human needs.

I'm not saying we should just concrete over everything, but surely we can find a more balanced approach. I've read about how other countries like Germany and France have more flexible zoning laws and it seems to work out okay for them. We could be using some of this land for renewable energy projects or sustainable housing, but instead it's just sitting there. It's like we're so afraid of change that we're willing to sacrifice our own environmental goals.