At the Selby District Council meeting, GMI Property Company Limited gave a presentation on the proposed eco town near Eggborough (Willow Green) in a private session. In other words, no one from the press or public where allowed to be present. This was in accordance with Section 100(4) of the Local Government Act 1972.

At the meeting, Councillors agreed to strongly reject the proposed new towns of Willow Green and Darringfields (the proposed eco-town near Darrington). The authority will also be contacting the Department for Communities and Local Government about the lack of consultation with the Council about the proposals.


Leader of Selby District Council, Councillor Mark Crane, said:

”This is not a rejection of the concept of eco towns - indeed two of the Council’s key corporate priorities centre around the environment and climate change.

But we do not believe that the principles of sustainability, delivering local employment, developing on brown field land and adequate provision of affordable housing can be achieved with either of these developments.

Neither sites have the necessary transport or employment infrastructure.

We also have grave concerns that such development would ignore locally agreed planning policies that have been developed in partnership in local communities and taking into consideration local needs.

We’ll be raising these worries with the Government to make sure the voices of people living in the Selby district can be heard."