FORD ECO-TOWN: Bid to have eco-town withdrawn from government shortlist

Two MPs this week renewed their call for Ford to be withdrawn from the shortlist of proposed eco-towns.

Nick Gibb and Nick Herbert say the proposal is not a viable option.

They have sent a letter to Arun District Council explaining their views ahead of the re-opening of the council's special select committee which will consider the latest evidence about the scheme for the 5,000-home development.

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The committee's first meeting of its revival will take place between 2pm and 5pm next Fridayat the Arun Civic Centre at Littlehampton.

A further meeting will take place at the same times on February 5 before all councillors meet on February 18 to decide their formal response to the government's consultation.

This renewed public activity by the council about the issue follows the publication of the government's draft planning policy statement about the eco-town programme.

The final version could name specific sites to mean those chosen could be forced through by the government in spite of opposition staged by groups such as Campaign Against Ford Eco-town.

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Mr Gibb (Bognor Regis and Littlehampton), backed by Mr Herbert (Arundel and South Downs), said: "It cannot be right that decisions about where new housing will go are made by ministers and civil servants and not by our locally-elected councils.

"It subverts the planning system and undermines local democracy."

In their letter, the MPs highlight several key concerns about using Ford for one of the developments from 2012 onwards.

These included the risk of flooding, 87 per cent of the site's status as greenfield land and inadequate roads, such as the A27.

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