Eco-town fight goes to High Court

The county council described the eco-town proposals as "deeply flawed"

Campaigners against a new "eco-town" in Oxfordshire have taken their fight to the High Court.

Proposals for the Weston Otmoor site, near Bicester, include 15,000 new homes. It would be one of the first new towns in England for 40 years.

It is among 10 sites shortlisted for "environmentally-friendly" towns.

The Weston Front Protest group has joined forces with campaigners against plans for Warwickshire in seeking an order to block the eco-town process.

Along with the Bard protesters, they argue that the proposals put forward by central government are fatally flawed and unlawful.

Protestor Tony Henman, father of former top British tennis star Tim, said: "We expect the case to be heard in the High Court before Christmas, at which point we hope to be given leave to add our extra weight to the very strong case that the Bard group have already brought".

'Zero carbon'

Tony Wilson from Cherwell District Council has also told residents that he did not see Weston Otmoor as the way forward.

He said that the council plans to develop more housing "in a far more structured way in-keeping with the existing infrastructure".

The government will finalise its plans for the 10 "eco-towns" in the next few months.

Ministers want five of them built by 2016, with the other half completed by 2020.

The largest will provide between 15,000 and 20,000 new homes, with officials saying the towns should be "zero-carbon" developments and should be exemplary in one area of sustainability, such as energy production or waste disposal.

They also want 30% to 40% of each eco-town to be allocated as affordable housing.

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