Ashby de la Zouch Town Council has criticised the 'blatantly political' decision to remove Meadow Lane in Coalville from the local development plan.

It comes as Ashby Council responded to proposals from North West Leicestershire District Council for new homes that would see the town increase to an 'unsustainable' 50 per cent.

Ashby councillors believe that removing a planned 400-home development from Meadow Lane has put more responsibility on Ashby to help boost a shortfall of around 2,000 homes.

District Council proposals have suggested sites at Burton Road and Packington Nook - with 1,100 homes - could be built on, to stay on target to build more than 680 homes per year up to 680 homes a year up to 2042.

Proposed housing sites across the district include the area adjacent to 194 Burton Road, Ashby de la Zouch - with land at Packington Nook, near Tamworth Road as a reserve site.

The council says it needs to ensure that at least 686 new homes are built every year up for the next 17 years. 

It adds that, currently, there is a shortfall of about 2,000 homes when compared to this requirement. 

But Labour-led Ashby Town Council's planning committee singled out the Meadow Lane decision amid a number of objections to the proposed new homes.

In March, a Labour group motion to have Meadow Lane reinstated into the local plan went before North West Leicestershire District councillors - but was defeated.

A council report says: "We do not accept that this round of consultation should be confined to the specific sites referred to, when it is obviously necessary to view these proposals in a wider context. Our own analysis indicates that the current situation is exacerbated by two independent issues.

"The District Council says it needs to ensure that at least 686 new homes are built every year for the next 17 years, adding that there is currently an assumption that the new settlement (Isley Woodhouse) will not be able to deliver its quota of 35 per cent of the new housing requirement. 

"We call upon officers to re-examine their figures. It is probable that, at examination, the Isley Woodhouse consortium will successfully argue for a higher allocation of homes.

"The second is the removal of the officer-recommended 400 dwelling site at Meadow Lane, Coalville, prior to the consultation.

"This was a blatantly political decision made by the alliance against officer recommendations and has resulted in the significant under-allocation to the principal town (Coalville).

"Again it is probable that Meadow Lane will be added at examination resulting in a further over-allocation if Packington Nook is retained.

"The District Council's own most recent site assessment points out that development of this site, alongside the Money Hill site, would result in an increase of around 50 per cent in the size of Ashby. This cannot be sustainable."