CAMPAIGNERS fighting long-term plans for a new town at Micheldever Station have welcomed the city council’s rejection of new settlements as a way to meet Winchester’s housing need over the next 20 years.

The Dever Society is now calling on the promoters of the 8,000 home new town at Micheldever Station to withdraw the proposal.

Last month, Winchester City Council announced the death of the Royaldown scheme after it had been removed from the authority’s SHELAA (Strategic Housing and Employment Land Availability Assessment).

Responses to the city council’s consultation on the new Local Plan indicated that of the four options proposed, the new settlement option was ranked the worst by the vast majority of people who responded. The limited support that there was came mainly from those promoting Micheldever Station and Royaldown.

The council has now decided to take forward a development strategy for the new Local Plan that rejects new settlements.

Following this total rejection by residents across Winchester district, the local community and now the council, the Dever Society is calling on the landowner, John Magnier, and his developer O’Flynn Group, to abandon the Micheldever new town scheme.

Since 1990 local people have defeated numerous attempts to have the land earmarked for a new town of up to 12,500 houses.

The family of John Magnier, the Irish bloodstock multi-millionaire, bought the Sutton Scotney Estate around 2016 for a reported £45 million from Zurich Insurance.

Dever Society chairman, Tessa Robertson, said: “We’re delighted, if unsurprised, about the scale of rejection for a new town in the district. The council has rightly said that a new town at Micheldever is the wrong scheme for the district and is neither wanted nor needed.

“With the withdrawal of Royaldown, Micheldever is the only remaining large new town still being promoted in Winchester district. Thirty years after the new town was first proposed, it has once again been rejected in no uncertain terms. The landowner and his developer should put the scheme out of its misery and abandon it for once and for all.”

A spokesperson for the promoter of the site said: “O’Flynn Group has noted with interest the proposed way forward for preparation of the new Winchester Local Plan. Our view is that considerable uncertainty remains over the direction that Winchester City Council will need to take in its next Local Plan.

"The city council’s recommended way forward suggests it is possible to continue with the same allocation distribution as under the existing local plan, adding in even more development in the south of the district. This is despite ongoing uncertainty over South Hampshire’s unmet need which could significantly boost Winchester’s housing target. The availability of sites and appetite of local communities in the south of the district for an as yet unknown amount of development remains to be seen.

"The Plan process has a very long way to go and several iterations of a draft local plan will have to be produced over the next three years and will be subject to consultation and amendment.

"The government is also committed to bringing forward revisions to the local plan process that will inevitably impact on the process being embarked on by the city council.

"The council’s SHLAA identifies Micheldever Station as a suitable, available and achievable site, which could deliver new homes, employment and infrastructure. It should remain on the table for the council to consider.

"For all these reasons we will continue to present Micheldever Station as an option for the future housing and employment needs of the area.”