UK: Tesco drops Eco-town plan

Supermarket giant Tesco announced today that it was dropping its bid to build one of the proposed eco-towns in the United Kingdom.

Hanley Grange in Cambridgeshire was one of 15 shortlisted by the Government this year as potential sites for up to 10 environmentally-sustainable new settlements.

But developer Tesco today said it believed delivering a “genuinely sustainable community” would be best achieved if local people and organisations felt they had been fully involved in the process.

It said the best way to do this would be to pursue plans for a community on the site through the upcoming review of the regional plans for development in the area, the Regional Spatial Strategy.

The decision by Tesco to abandon the eco-town bid comes after the Wellcome Trust, which owns 270 acres of the site earmarked for the development, refused to sell its land.

The announcement is the latest blow to the eco-town project after bids in Staffordshire and Lincolnshire and part of a bid in Bedfordshire all pulled out.

But a spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: “The whole point of developing a long list of potential locations was to get down to a shorter final list, and we remain committed to announcing this final shortlist of up to ten potential locations early in the New Year.”

“There remains a serious shortage of housing in the Cambridge area with almost 10,000 families on the waiting list for affordable housing, and this is an issue that must be resolved.

“We have been clear that only proposals of the highest standards stand a chance of becoming an eco town.

“The promoters have decided they need more time to develop their proposal and we would expect it to be considered as part of the planned review of the Regional Spatial Strategy.”

Shadow housing minister Grant Shapps said: “Eco-towns started off as an idea that sounded good, but Labour’s incompetent handling of the project has led to wide-scale distrust amongst the public and developers alike.

“Now even those who are behind the applications have decided that it is better to go it alone and forget the government sponsored eco-con scheme.”

He accused ministers of “arrogantly ploughing ahead” with proposals which had been rejected by green groups, residents and developers.

Tesco’s decision to drop the bid was welcomed by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) which said it was “delighted” the supermarket had recognised the importance of working with local people through the planning process.

The eco-town scheme has drawn protests from residents who fear local democracy and planning processes are being undermined or that the towns will put pressure on infrastructure, public services and the environment.

Concerns had been raised about Hanley Grange’s impact on on rare local wildlife, including great crested newts and water voles and a nearby wetland Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).