As Gordon Brown announced a shorter list of sites approved for the Government’s eco-town scheme than expected yesterday, many campaigners across the country were breathing a sigh of relief. Whilst the Government’s approved list contained ten sites, others have been nominated either by councils, developers or landowners. Yesterday, the final day of work before Parliament breaks today for its summer recess, it was announced that only four sites would go forward in the first phase but it is unlikely that work will start on any of the four sites before 2016.
1. Whitehill-Bordon, Hampshire – 5,500 homes, including 2,000 affordable houses, on a land owned by the Ministry of Defence
2. Imerys, Cornwall – 5,000 homes, including 1,500 affordable units, on former china clay workings, industrial land at the disused Imerys mines
3. North West Bicester, Oxfordshire – 5,000 homes with at least 1,500 affordable homes
4. Rackheath, Norfolk – 6,000 homes with 1,800 affordable units. This site replaces the abandoned proposal at former RAF Coltishall
For anti-eco town campaigners, the battle may not be over. A decision regarding the future of a further eight proposals, both government and self-nominated, will be taken at a later date. Housing Minister John Healy expects the second wave to include at least six eco-towns and has promised up to £5m for councils wishing to conduct further planning work on proposals. Although the sites available for selection at this later point may differ, those sites not included in the director’s cut yesterday are:
1. Elsenham, Essex – At least 5,000 homes, 1,500 affordable units, north-east of the existing Elsenham village
2. Ford, West Sussex – 5,000 homes, includes 2,000 affordable units, on brownfield land, including the former Ford airfield.
3. Marston Vale and New Marston, Bedfordshire – 15,400 homes, 5,000 affordable units, on a series of locations including former industrial sites
4. Middle Quinton, Warwickshire – 6,000 homes, including 2,000 affordable units, on a former Royal Engineers depot
5. Pennbury, Leicestershire – between 12,000 and 15,000 homes, include 4,000 new affordable, on a development incorporating brownfield, greenfield and surplus public sector land.
6. Rossington, South Yorkshire – 5,000 homes with 1,500 affordable units intended to regenerate the former colliery village of Rossington.
7. Rushcliffe, Nottinghamshire – between 5,000 and 6,000 homes is proposed at a former RAF base in Newton and Bingham, with at least 1,500 affordable units.
8. Weston Otmoor, Oxfordshire – between 10,000 and 15,000 homes on a site that includes an airstrip and is expected to include between 3,000 and 5,000 affordable units.
There have been many to criticise the eco-town proposals. Grant Shapps, Shadow Housing Minister, argues that “many of these schemes are unsustainable, unviable and unpopular, but Gordon Brown wants to impose them from Whitehall irrespective of local opinion”. Amongst the many lobby and protest groups, both BARD and the Campaign to Protect Rural England, who said the government was usurping the role of planning authorities and distorting the planning process, have failed in their legal action. And in April of this year Chair of the Local Government Association Margaret Eaton reported that “leading lawyers have confirmed that the approach to eco-towns is open to legal challenge”, although their web site now suggests that they are working with the government on this issue.
The fight against the Pennbury and Rushcliffe proposals was taken up by local MPs Andrew Robathan, Peter Soulsby and Edward Garnier. In a Parliamentary debate, Mr Garnier labelled the proposal an ‘idiotic scheme’. Owners of the site at Pennbury in Leicestershire, the Co-operative, have already responded to protester’s relief by reminding them that they never envisaged that they would be selected for the first phase as they hadn’t yet compiled the planning application. They are hoping for selection in phase two. So idiotic or not, the Pennbury Protesters aren’t out of the woods yet.
Arable land around Stretham that will become Mereham if EERA are successful
Neither are those opposed to an addition development in Cambridgeshire. Mereham, a development of 6,000 houses, was proposed north east of Cambridge on the A10 and would engulf four existing villages; Haddenham, Wilburton, Stretham, and Witchford. The original planning application was unanimously rejected by East Cambridgeshire District Council, supported by Cambridgeshire County Council and South Cambridgeshire, the Planning Inspector and the Secretary of State, Hazel Blears, who later rejected three appeals by the developers.
However, non-elected officials at the regional assembly EERA, have recently elected to reinstate the proposals. In response to this, Brian Stewart, Chief Executive of EERA, wrote a letter of apology published in the local press “asking for volunteers to attend an EERA meeting” and “to write to EERA”. So the Say No to Mereham members won’t be the only campaigners replacing their banners and placards.
Kat Martindale 