Report attacks Prescott house-building plan

John Prescott's drive to build half a million homes outside London threatens serious environmental damage, a report has warned.

The proposals, which centre on the M11 corridor and Essex, could cause water supply problems and jammed roads. Noise and flood risk would go up while air quality, access to recreational facilities, wildlife and local architectural character will decline, it is claimed.

Worst-hit areas would be the corridor from Peterborough to Cambridge and around Stevenage, Milton Keynes and Harlow. The Governmentcommissioned report, by consultants Levett-Therivel, says the growth would be better placed elsewhere in England, especially the North, where there is more room.

The Campaign to Protect Rural England said it was clear that "further development in the London arc is unsustainable".