Environmental activist Stuart Hayward believes it is a conflict of interest to have the Department of Planning and Department of Housing under the same Minister.Earlier this week The Royal Gazette reported Minister Walter Roban is now in charge of housing in addition to his Ministry of Environment responsibilities. He took over housing after David Burch stepped down from Government last week.Mr Hayward, who heads the Bermuda Environmental Sustainability Taskforce, said the environmental group felt the appointment opened Mr Roban up to allegations of bias.He said: “The most frequent issue arising in the search for and supply of housing is that of environmental and planning concerns. Similarly, one of the most demanding aspects of the Planning Department’s work is the issues associated with housing.“Neither of these important portfolios should be faced with the perception or reality of a bias favouring one over the other.”Mr Hayward said it would be more appropriate to keep a development-oriented department separate from a development-monitoring and controlling department.The Government did not respond to his comments by press time.