Eco-town: legal challenge

In a letter announcing that it is seeking grounds for a judicial review—which was due to land on ministers’ desks today (Thursday)— Bard, the group set up to fight the scheme, claims that the government has breached a United Nations treaty on public participation in environmental decision-making.

It also claims the government has failed to conform with European legislation requiring it to carry out a strategic environmental assessment of the eco-towns programme in parallel with the consultation process.

The letter states that under the UN Aarhus Convention, the government must allow public participation in the preparation of policies affecting the environment and must take the outcome of consultation conscientiously into account. The government, it claims, has not undertaken consultation on its eco-towns policy.

Meanwhile, the promoters of the 6,000-home Long Marston eco-town scheme— St Modwen and The Bird Group, who refer to the site as Middle Quinton—have declined an offer to speak at the Bard campaign’s first public meeting at Stratford High School tomorrow (Friday) evening.

Hilary Bliss, Bard campaign co-ordinator, said: “We decided that they [St Modwen] should be given an opportunity to put their case, but they declined the offer saying that they would be conducting their own extensive consultation programme in future.”

The meeting begins at 7.30pm. Speakers will include Stratford MP John Maples, Mark Sullivan, from the Warwickshire branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and Cllr Izzi Seccombe (Cons, Ettington), a well-known objector to the proposals.

Yesterday a spokesman for St Modwen and The Bird Group told the Herald: “We are committed to an extensive public consultation programme on Middle Quinton but a public meeting of this nature at this time is not our preferred way of entering into that dialogue. We are, however, in discussion with Bard and have suggested that we meet with them and representatives of our technical and consultant teams so that we can discuss the proposals in detail.”

In another development, a meeting has been fixed for next Thursday at the offices of the Local Government Association, in London, at which leaders and chief executives of local authorities who have eco-towns planned for their areas will discuss with LGA bosses ways of dealing with the proposals.

Among those taking part will be Cllr Les Topham (Cons, Sambourne), the leader of Stratford District Council, and Paul Lankester, the authority’s chief executive.

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