Eco-towns legal alert welcomed

11:38am Thursday 24th July 2008

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WARNINGS that plans by the Government to force eco-towns on communities could be illegal have been welcomed by a Selby councillor.

Politicians of all parties have been united against the proposals for an eco-town in the Selby district.

Originally, the Government was looking at four sites – Gascoigne Wood, Burn Airfield, Church Fenton and Willow Green, near Beal.

Consultants later ruled out all the sites apart from Gascoigne Wood, where it is proposed 5,000 homes are built, although council leaders in the Leeds City Region voted not to recommend any site at all.

But lawyers for the Local Government Association (LGA) have now said the proposals go against the principle of the current system of development through plans drawn up by local authorities, and could be open to legal challenge.

John Steel QC and James Strachan also said existing planning policy covered the concept of providing housing in new settlements in an environmentally sustainable way.

They surmised the only reason the Government could have for not complying with the existing legislation is to avoid the normal scrutiny planning applications are subjected to.

Coun John McCartney represents Eggborough ward and has been a vociferous opponent of the eco-town proposals.

He said: “Gascoigne Wood would have been the same as Willow Green – filled with commuters – and that is unsustainable as an eco-town.

“I am pleased the LGA legal advice is that the procedure is illegal as the Government is trying to turn planning on its head rather than put in a planning application and have it considered by the local councillors. Instead, they are saying ‘you have to have an eco-town’.”

But a spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government spokesman said the Labour administration was not attempting to get round the usual planning process.

He said: “We absolutely disagree with the LGA’s claims and believe this legal advice can only have been obtained on the basis of a misrepresentation of our policy.

“We have made it absolutely clear throughout that eco-towns will be different and will have higher environmental standards than a normal development and the applications will also have to be considered through the normal planning process.”