Opponents pour cold water on claim that Gething-backed project could create 5,000 jobs

Martin Shipton

Opponents of a controversial business park project promoted by former First Minister Vaughan Gething have poured cold water on a claim that it could create around 5,000 on-site jobs.

Estate agents Savills have made the claim about the Cardiff Parkway Developments (CPD) project, which would involve building a business park adjacent to a new mainline station on the eastern outskirts of the capital.

The claim was made in an unpublished report commissioned by the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) - which strongly supports the proposed development - that has been leaked to the Business Live website, another strong supporter of the project.

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Undemocratic

Responding to assertions apparently made in the report, which has not been seen by Nation.Cymru, Lyn Eynon, the planning lead for Cardiff Civic Society, said: “The Savills report has been leaked to those who will use it to justify the proposal, but I cannot find it in the public domain.

"No surprise but this behaviour hides its arguments from public scrutiny and is profoundly undemocratic. Its claim that job displacement [under which jobs created at the site would be lost nearby] will be ‘modest’ is questionable and should be subject to such scrutiny. Savills have of course been paid to produce the justification CCR/CPD want.

“As I’ve argued before, the idea that Rolls Royce might bring ‘thousands’ of jobs to this site is fanciful. The company estimates AUKUS [a nuclear submarine partnership involving Australia, the UK and the US] might generate 1,000 for it in total and most of those are intended for Derby.

“East of Hendre Lakes [in east Cardiff] is not the optimal location for a train station to serve Trowbridge or St Mellons. CPD wants the Welsh Government and / or the UK Government to pay for its grandiose plans, seeking to blame delay, but a mainline station there never had a solid business case.

“A leaked report from PEDW [the Welsh Government body that evaluates planning developments of national significance] stated that the station should be built before office development started. If we are forced into mitigation, then we should insist that condition remains. Lack of finance could stop this even if environmental concerns do not.

“The claim that this development would provide specialist space not available in central Cardiff is at best exaggerated. The plans show that most of the office space would be provided in city centre style towers, even though that is not what the Local Development Plan expects.

“Planning Policy Wales 12 does not provide for a ‘planning balance’ justification for concreting over a Site of Special Scientific Interest [SSSI - as the project proposes}.

“Natural Resources Wales (NRW) ‘approval’ is central to the case being made by CPD and its supporters. If it does go through, NRW will carry a large part of the responsibility. My reading is that approval is conditional in that NRW accepts that the scheme could be environmentally neutral or even beneficial but not that it will be in practice. NRW has clearly been leant on heavily on this.

“I would also add that the UK Government is looking at legislation to make flexible working a permanent thing, which makes the idea of new office space even more anachronistic.”

Office space

A spokesperson for Friends of Gwent Levels said: “The application would completely destroy acres of the Gwent Levels SSSI. These are supposed to be the jewels in the crown of our nature in Wales. SSSIs only cover 8% of the land and surface areas of Wales

“The business park is not needed - there is a great deal of empty office space in Cardiff and the vicinity - even a lot in nearby business parks - and in any case, the pandemic has resulted in much less overall need for office space. Indeed, the Welsh Government has a target for further reducing the need to travel to work

“The railway station is a red herring - it was not in Transport for Wales’ plans, who are already proposing to build at least four other railway stations between Severn Tunnel Junction and Cardiff, and it only covers a small proportion of the development site. It is merely a trojan horse to build this unnecessary and damaging white elephant over our wildlife.

“Even if you did want a railway station on the east side of Cardiff, this is not a good location for it.

“The days of these mega office developments are over, as we move to a more sustainable way of providing workspace. It's about time this dinosaur was finally put to rest.”

Hype

In a letter for publication to Nation.Cymru, Paul Williams of Cardiff said: “This last week has seen further lobbying in support of this scheme, parts of which include the familiar hype and hyperbole which accompanies an application for a new business park.

“While a new Welsh Government Minister and advisers are pondering whether to grant planning consent for this scheme, it is worth reminding ourselves of the key issues, and also to consider how the Welsh Government has found itself in such a contradictory situation to determine this application.The application is for a c900,000 sq ft business park and a second intercity station for Cardiff on a site of special scientific interest.

“There is no identified funding source for the £120m plus intercity station (public funds would need to be provided), and no recognised demand for 900,000sq ft of out of town B1 business premises. The Planning Policy states that consent can only be granted for development in an SSSI ‘in wholly exceptional circumstances'.

"Well, there is simply nothing exceptional about these proposals: another out of town business park, together with a third Intercity station in the 11 miles between Cardiff and Newport, which has no funding. This station would have a 650 space car park which would attract rail passengers to switch from using public transport and taxis to Cardiff Central to using private cars to this out of town facility. There would be further public expenditure required to upgrade the local highway network to accommodate all the additional traffic.

“If the Planning Policy guidance is adhered to, then there can only be one decision: do not approve the planning application.

“What is now concerning a number of people is whether the Welsh Government is too seriously conflicted to make the correct decision. It is one of the three joint venture partners of the company, Cardiff Parkway Developments Ltd, which submitted the application (and it has already spent in excess of £6m of public money supporting the proposed scheme).

"The Welsh Government is in effect both the applicant and the body determining the application. How on earth did it get itself into such a position? Did the civil servants within the Transport Department not consult those in the Planning Division before advising the then Minister to support this development, on such an environmentally sensitive site? The site has been an SSSI for many years.

“Finally, no one wishes to deprive the residents of St Mellons of decent transfer links, but provide a suitable facility adjacent to where the residents actually live.”

Pressure

This week Mr Gething sought to put pressure on his successor Eluned Morgan during First Minister’s Questions to hurry the planning decision along.

We asked the Welsh Government for details of any further public money that may be committed to the project.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “The planning application is under active consideration and a decision will be communicated in due course. It would be inappropriate to comment further in relation to any aspect of the project until the planning issue is determined.”