BREAKING NEWS: Arun District Council applauds "common sense" Eco-Town decision

A government document, released in the last hour, lists the four sites it has chosen to support, but Ford is not included.

Councillor Graham Tyler was chairman of a select committee established by Arun to look in to bid, which found that Ford was not a suitable location for an Eco-Town; a decision that was endorsed the full council.

He said: "We are delighted that common sense has prevailed and this site will not be progressed as a location.

"The government has listened to the people and put the planning process back where it should be, in the hands of the local planning authority.

"This reinforces the messages that came out of the select committee process last summer."

During the six-day inquiry, held last summer, the committee heard evidence from all parties, including local residents and the promoters of the site, as well as West Sussex County County's transport department, Sussex police, SEEDA and West Sussex Primary Care Trust.

The successful Eco-Town sites, which will pioneer innovative design and infrastructure for greener living, are Whitehill-Bordon in Hampshire, St Austell (China Clay) in Cornwall, Rackheath in Norfolk and North West Bicester in Oxfordshire.

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