Eco-town doubts from local government

Wednesday, 23 July 2008 12:00 AM

Town halls are throwing the legality of government plans for ten eco-towns in doubt.

A legal statement from the Local Government Association says the approach to eco-towns taken by the government is "deeply flawed".

It comes as the Department for Communities and Local Government prepares to publish a planning policy statement outlining guidance on how the eco-towns should be constructed.

LGA chairman Sir Simon Milton said: "While we are in favour of tackling the housing crisis by building thousands of extra homes, some of them in developments with the highest environmental standards, we don't think this is the right way to do it."

The government announced the first 15 locations shortlisted to become eco-towns in April this year. From these the final ten locations are expected to be confirmed by the time parliament returns from its long summer recess in October.

Critics had argued the proposed eco-towns in fact threatened the environment, being built on greenbelt land, posing a risk to wildlife or overturning previous planning decisions.

The LGA is more concerned about whether the proposals fit in with existing planning regulations, however.

A joint opinion published today by John Steel QC and James Strachan says there are "sound grounds" for seeking judicial review of the government's approach to delivering eco-towns.

Their argument is based on the claim that the plan-led system of development control is being left behind by eco-towns' development through the use of a planning policy statement.

"This conflict is all the more acute because the concept of an eco-town does not appear to be materially different from the concept of providing housing in new settlements in an environmentally sustainable way," they say.

"There therefore does not appear to be any compelling justification or rationale for seeking to promote eco-towns outside the existing statutory plan-led system, other than the government's wish to avoid the system due to the need for proper scrutiny, which takes time."

The DCLG explained the government rejects this argument completely.

A spokesperson 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."

Alex Stevenson

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