Preparations for the Council's public investigation into the possible eco-town at Ford are well under way following the publication of an agreed timetable of events.

The members of the special Select Committee tasked with leading the investigation, comprising of eight councillors and one independent planning advisor, have already met several times and have now agreed how the six-day inquiry will unfold.

They have compiled a list of the most important topics to be discussed over the course of the inquiry in order to establish the viability of an eco-town at Ford and assigned each topic to a particular day.

Topics include roads and transportation, economy, housing, flood risk and drainage and biodiversity.

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Councillor Graham Tyler, Chairman of the Select Committee, said: "We have looked long and hard at the areas which need to be discussed in public in order to gauge the impact of an eco-town at Ford.

"Whilst it would be impossible to cover every possible aspect, we believe we have agreed a comprehensive timetable that will allow detailed discussion into the major topics and help inform us all about the impact such a development would have on Arun.

"We sincerely hope that the public, many of whom have expressed strong views about the eco-town proposals, will attend these meetings to give us their input and to listen to the evidence."

Invitations have now been sent to a wide-ranging list of organisations to attend the investigation and to submit evidence to the Select Committee on each particular topic. These invitations include Government Departments and Agencies such as the Highways Agency and Environment Agency and essential service providers such as Portsmouth water and the Primary Care Trusts.

See: Special Select Committee Chosen To Investigate Viability Of Ford Eco-Town

(CD/JM)