Battle to save London Eye

A furious row erupted today over the future of the London Eye.

Politicians, writers, broadcasters, actors and businesses reacted with outrage to news that the landmark tourist attraction could be dramatically evicted from its site on the South Bank within weeks.

They spoke out after the Evening Standard revealed how the South Bank Centre (SBC), owner of the land on which one part of the Eye stands, has served the landmark with an eviction notice effective on 1 July.

It sent the legal warning after attempting to increase its rent from £65,000 a year to £2.5 million - an increase which the Eye's owners are opposing.

Supporters of the Eye hoped the board of the SBC - chaired by Labour peer Lord Hollick - would have backed down after a meeting last night. Today politicians from across the political spectrum and celebrities joined forces in an attempt to put pressure on the SBC to settle the row and secure the Eye's future.

A spokesman for Visit London said closure of the wheel would be a disaster for the capital. He said: "It is one of London's most important visitor attractions."

The project cost £85 million in 2000 - financed by British Airways. Its income is now about £40 million a year but repaying the loan to BA eats up almost all its profit. In addition Tussauds, appointed operator in perpetuity by BA, takes four per cent of revenue as its "management fee". The Eye's debt is growing at the rate of £25 million a year and now stands at more than £150 million.

The plot of land it is situated on is designated Metropolitan Open Land and has no commercial value because it cannot be built upon.

The original agreement between the Eye and the SBC was that it would pay a rent of £65,000, eventually rising to £210,000.

However, when the lease expired, the SBC decided it wanted to negotiate a new rent. At the same time SBC sent the Eye company a letter demanding the removal of "the wheel and all other items from the premises by 1 July at the latest".

Kate Hoey, Labour MP for Vauxhall, said: "[Culture Secretary] Tessa Jowell knows about this. She should intervene and should be calling Lord Hollick into account ."

Actor Tom Conti accused the SBC of holding the Eye to ransom with its rent demand. "It would be an absurd waste of money to have to move it," he said. Meanwhile, Today programmepresenter John Humphrys said: "It would be daft to close it. It's not Trafalgar Square, Nelson's Column or St Paul's, but it is an important feature in London."

Other people to support the campaign to keep the Eye include LBC presenter Nick Ferrari, newsreader Alastair Stuart, TV presenter Lowri Turner and author and Standard columnist Will Self, who said: "It has become an icon in an incredibly short time."