21.2.06: City Councillors break ranks:
Independents reject Northern route plan:
TSLM supporters packed the public gallery at Morecambe Town Hall today
Monday 20 February to hear City councillors on the planning committee discuss
the County Council planning application for the Heysham M6 Link Road.
Cracks have appeared in the City Council support for the unloved plan, 7 councillors
voted against the road. One abstained, and 12 towed the party line and voted for.
David Gate said “This shows that opinion is moving steadily against this flawed scheme.
Our local MP is against it. The Environment Agency, government watchdog on flooding,
has filed a major objection to it. And now 7 local councillors have put common sense
before politics and voted against it. It’s more than we expected. The County Council
should now drop this scheme, which has so little to offer Lancaster & Morecambe”
TSLM members were allowed 3 minutes to voice their opposition to the road. David Gate
claimed that it would not reduce congestion in the area or regenerate Morecambe.
He believed other alternatives should be tried first.
James Seddon described how it would affect the health and wellbeing of communities
along its path, and form a massive barrier between Lancaster and Morecambe.
People felt let down because there had been no consultation since the plans were
revealed, in spite of 76% opposition shown in LCC questionnaires.
Mike Porter claimed that the Green Belt would be destroyed and air quality
would get worse. He called on the Council to follow the Environment Agency and
object to the road because the risks of flooding have not been investigated.
For their full presentations (pdf document), click here
A letter from Councillor Eve Ashworth was read out, registering her concerns
and objections. She believed other alternatives should be examined, such as free
school buses and greater use of rail.
Halton Councillor Paul Woodruff spoke against the scheme because it did not
include the bridge to Luneside, which was a condition of City’s approval.
He asked: as the bridge design has been condemned by the Environment Agency,
can the public have confidence in the rest of the scheme? He was particularly
concerned about the traffic forecasts for his own Halton. Independent David Kerr
said it was preposterous to build a road which would bring pollution and health
risks like asthma into our residential areas.
Green Councillor Chris Coates questioned the wisdom of building a link road entirely for the benefit of Heysham Port, when rising sea levels threatened its viability. Fellow Green Jon Barry referred to global warming, which could only get worse with the emissions from this new road, leading to increased flood risk and divided communities.
Independent Keith Budden was not convinced of the benefits of the road, while Eve Archer believed the scheme was not beneficial to road hauliers.
Conservative Sylvia Rogerson called for a public enquiry, so that the views of the public could be heard. She abstained in the vote.
TSLM is delighted that the Councillors have spoken out, and of course the Environment Agency objections are devastating for the scheme, but it is difficult to see the County Council not approving their own planning application. If ever there was a case for public inquiry or judicial review this is it.