Tesco pulls out of eco-town scheme

by Nikki Sandison, Brand Republic 29-Aug-08, 09:15

LONDON - Tesco has abandoned its controversial plans to build one of Gordon Brown's eco-towns at Hanley Grange, near Cambridge, following widespread local opposition.

The supermarket has withdrawn its proposed greenfield development, which would have included 8,000 homes, in a further blow to Labour's plans to build up to 10 eco-towns.

Out of the government's original shortlist of 15 sites announced in April, only 12 remain.

The Hanley Grange scheme's other main landowner the Wellcome Trust charity had already withdrawn from the development last month, reducing the land that was available by a third.

Tesco said that it would instead try to pursue a conventional development on the same site through the East of England regional spatial strategy plan.

The supermarket chain claimed that the eco-town had been a "strong proposal" that had "very good prospects" of winning government support but acknowledged that "a genuinely sustainable community stands the best chance if a broad range of stakeholders in the region feel that they have been fully engaged in the process leading up a decision".

Opposition group Stop Henley Grange is campaigning against the eco-town development on the grounds that it is the wrong location, Cambridgeshire has enough houses already and the area doesn't have the sufficient infrastructure.

Julie Redfern, the chairman of the group, said: "We are delighted that Tesco has seen sense and this is a victory for local democracy."

The eco-towns will be the first new towns to be built in the UK for 40 years and are a key part of the Prime Minister's plans to tackle the UK's housing shortage.

A spokesman for the Department of 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 10 potential locations early in the New Year."