Midlands scheme opponents vow to fight plan

Herpreet Kaur Grewal, Regeneration & Renewal, 11 April 2008

Kevin Feltham, chairman of the Campaign Against the Stoughton Co-operative Eco-Town (Cascet) that was set up to oppose a proposed eco-town near Leicester, told Regeneration & Renewal that he was disappointed that the plans had made the Government's shortlist.

But he added that the campaign group was taking legal advice in order to boost its case against the controversial plans to build 12,000 to 15,000 homes on a mixed greenfield and brownfield site.

He said: "We are getting experts - such as legal experts and environmental agencies - to comment on all the proposals to build a stronger case against the plans."

Stephen Turnbull, planning partner at business law firm LG, said that fierce opposition from local campaigners may delay the Government's timetable for the initiative. But he added that it would almost certainly fail to stop the process.

He said that under the existing planning system, the Government has "a host of powers in its armoury. The secretary of state has the final say on any challenge or appeal (from residents or landowners), so one way or another it's hard to see how anything can stop the Government from getting its own way over eco-towns."

Meanwhile, think-tank the Centre for Cities warned that residents of the new eco-towns will rely heavily on their cars due to the settlements' distance from the larger pool of jobs in nearby towns and cities and a lack of public cash to pay for new transport links.

Its director, Dermot Finch, said: "Most of these eco-town sites are based in the countryside, far away from the majority of jobs found in larger centres. Many eco-town residents will rely heavily on their cars and generate both congestion and emissions."