FORD ECO-TOWN: Housing minister tovisit Ford eco-site

Ms Flint has confirmed she will tour the area around the former airfield in the week beginning July 27.

She intends to spend half a day visiting the site, meeting developers, campaigners and the key councillors and officials at Arun District Council.

Arun leader Cllr Gill Brown said the timing was far from ideal because it was soon after the start of the school holidays which could reduce the amount of traffic.

But she said: "Ms Flint will come when she wants to come, not when we want her to come."

Ms Flint has been the focus of the opposition to the eco-town proposals for some 5,000 homes and thousands of jobs on a site which is partly built upon and partly farmland.

Weeks of protests followed the announcement Ford was among 15 sites from which the ten eco-town locations will be chosen. Consultation ended on June 30 and an announcement on the selected locations is expected towards the end of the year.

Meanwhile, Arundel and South Downs MP Nick Herbert and Bognor Regis and Littlehampton MP Nick Gibb held an hour-long meeting with Ms Flint to discuss the proposed eco-town.

The session in the Commons allowed them to raise their strong concerns about the proposal.

Ms Flint contended there had been a lack of new-build social housing in the Arun district over the past few years.

She also suggested there had been a lack of progress by Arun District Council in allocating land for new housing generally.

This was countered by Mr Gibb who pointed out the number of new homes Arun had to accommodate was mired in delays caused by conflicting allocations.

Mr Herbert highlighted the woeful state of surrounding roads, particularly congestion on the A259 and A27 and the lack of an Arundel bypass.

He pointed to the poor public transport available in the villages in the area and the rural setting of the proposed eco-town which would inevitably mean that most residents would require a car.

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