Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert and Mid Sussex MP Sir Nicholas Soames have described the Mayfield new town proposal as "friendless" with "none of the qualifications for a garden city or town" after the Government announced a new garden town in Oxfordshire this week.

 

As part of its National Infrastructure Plan the Government revealed plans for a "a locally-led garden town at Bicester, backed by the council and local MP, which will provide up to 13,000 new homes".

 

This follows an announcement last year that new a garden city of 15,000 homes will be built in Ebbsfleet in Kent.

 

But the West Sussex MPs have pointed out that these new towns have very different characteristics to the Mayfield proposal in West Sussex.

 

Both Ebbsfleet and Bicester have the support of their local MPs and councils, and are to be built on brownfield land, a Ministry of Defence site in the case of Bicester.

 

Both also have access to significant infrastructure, with existing road and rail links which are being improved as part of the plan.  The Government is funding £100 million of infrastructure for Ebbsfleet and £44 million on new roads including a new junction on the M40 for Bicester.

 

The MPs point out that Mayfield has none of these qualifications.  Nick Herbert said: "As the Government has emphasised, the Bicester garden town is locally-led and has the support of local councils and the town's MP, and is being built on brownfield land.

 

"Mayfield is the exact opposite: it is a friendless proposal, strongly opposed by the local MPs, opposed by both Mid Sussex and Horsham District Councils, and it would be built on a greenfield site which doesn't even have all the landowners' support."

 

Sir Nicholas Soames said: "The Mayfield new town proposal is fundamentally flawed and simply does not accord with Government policy on new towns.  There is not, and never will be, the infrastructure to support 10,000 houses in open countryside in this location.

 

"Mayfield should recognise that their plan is unsustainable and out of line with other garden city-style developments that have been taken forward".

 

The MPs spoke out strongly against the Mayfield new town when they gave evidence to the Planning Inspector last month.