Rutland & Melton Liberal Democrats

Eco Town "Pennbury"

The local Liberal Democrats have a slight dilemma because whilst they support environmental issues very strongly, they object to the proposed local "eco town" known as Pennbury. The three Lib Dem Councillors in Thurnby and Houghton Ward (Simon Galton, Janice Tooley and Amanda Burrell) are completely and utterly against the Co-op's proposed scheme for their ward. The local community they represent are very much opposed to the plan and the councillors have a responsibility to represent and articulate their concerns to the local authorities and to the Government. Their main concerns can be summarised as the lack of transport infrastructure; severe road congestion on the A6 and A47; a huge impact on the highly valued landscape and countryside character; a deficit in water resources and inadequate sewage capacity; and the fact that rail links are distant from the site offering no serious prospect of delivering a modal shift i.e. persuading people out of their cars. They believe this is not a sustainable location and it does not meet the Government's stated criteria for an eco town not least the requirement to be separate and freestanding. There is as little as one field between the edge of the proposed development and parts of Oadby and Stoughton Village.

County Councillor Simon Galton says that the next major concern is about the process being used by the Labour Government to force these towns on local communities. The local democratic planning process is being bypassed and, although the Government has refused to publish the information, there is real concern that the in confidence views submitted by local councils and government departments / agencies such as the EA and DFT, advised against this site for the reasons mentioned above. Moreover the Regional Spatial Strategy (Regional Plan) for the East Midlands currently under preparation, sets out the amount of development in each of the 43 districts in the region and gives broad advice on where development should take place. The Councils were required to advise the Regional Assembly, the body which prepares the Plan, on how and where development should be accommodated and in giving this advice Leicestershire County Council carried out assessments in a number of areas including east of Leicester i.e. the land proposed by the Co-op. This concluded that due to the lack of transport connections to the major road network and its high quality landscape, the area should not be put forward for large scale development.

He continues to say that, unlike the proposed eco towns, this advice was tested by an independent inspector during the Public Examination into the regional plan last summer and the Inspector supported the Council's views and has not included the area in the Plan. The draft plan is now with the Secretary of State who has the final decision; however, before the ink is dry, sites for eco towns are being put forward contrary to the policies in the Regional Plan. Government planning guidance is also being prepared, which will in effect, allow central government to overrule local plans in the areas finally picked for the 10 eco towns. This is just another example of the Labour Government interfering in the local democratic process and as Lib Dems we condemn this action.

Lib Dems are not against the concept of eco towns but are totally against this site and the undemocratic methods being used by the Government to impose 15,000 houses, a town the size of Hinckley, on this area.

Professor John Twidell says that we should all be pushing for everything new to be 'eco', from single houses to development estates, as they come to planning now. Cllr Galton agrees that there is no problem with the principle of eco towns and that they could be a solution to the housing shortage in some areas especially where brown field sites have been proposed. However, he strongly believes that these issues should be decided locally and that new towns in open countryside like Pennbury will just encourage car use and is therefore not the solution.

Lib Dem Julia Goldsworthy MP came to look at the site and meet local residents. She said that the priority should be bringing back into use the empty homes in the county of Leicestershire before more greenfield land is taken for housing and that there should be proper consultation and support from local communities before individual sites go ahead.

Friends of the Earth say that there is a danger the government is using "eco towns" to give a green tinge to its programme for three million new homes by 2020 under the guise of its "Sustainable Communities Plan." Much of this will be built to standards which are likely to be far lower than those for "eco towns." They add that new housing usually means more road building and other developments and that the Government has not fully assessed the environmental impact of this in terms of pressure on green spaces, water supplies and existing transport systems.

As members of the Campaign Against the Stoughton Co-op Eco Town (CASCET) the 3 ward councillors are working to raise funds to pay for professional help to fight the plans. If you would like more information on how to help please contact SGalton@leics.gov.uk