Sheep may safely graze...?

The final day of the inquiry. The time when everyone makes their closing submissions to the Inspector, just in case he's missed anything. It should have been the big showdown...the point at which all the ills of the past three weeks are aired and put behind us. But it lost its edge in a way, because the beleagured Hallam team had disappeared and left their barrister, Andrew Williamson, to take the flak on his own.

We were up first...fittingly I felt, as at last it seemed the residents were going to be heard ahead of all the legal jargon that everyone else would use. We'd prepared our submissions - just 6 pages - all easy to digest by the public spectators. We even put some pithy comments in ... I won't spoil it for you now, if you want to read it all click here

Then onto the big guns. One after another they volleyed their siege weapons into the Hallam camp. The Environment Agency exploiting the already open and festering wounds on water contamination in the River Mease...the Highways agency taking blood on the unresolved Highways problems...Jeremy Cahill QC for the MoneyHill Consortium, also taking advantage of the lack of defence around the River Mease...Hugh Richards for the Burton Road site taking no prisoners on the comparative benefits of his clients scheme. Then Chris Young, the District Council's barrister (also acting for the County Council and Natural England) bayonetting over and over again on planning policy, the importance of the LDF, yes the River Mease and yes, the highways issues.

Remarkably and, it has to be said, like a true professional, Mr Williamson wiped the blood away from his face, dusted himself down and delivered a nearly two hour finale for Hallam. The River Mease problem wasn't theirs, it was everyone elses fault...the highways problems and all the late evidence - yes, everyone else was to blame. Of course they could deliver all the houses in 5 years and the other sites weren't capable. It reeled off like a 50 page excuse for why he hadn't done his homework. There are five public/government agencies against them, two developers and PNRA, and we had all got it wrong. Hallam were right...they were going to save the day. It sounded like the cracked record we'd heard all the way along.

Anyway, that's the end of the inquiry proper and this blog. Keep an eye on the website www.packington-nook.org.uk for news from now on. It isn't over until the Inspector reports in a couple of months and the Hallam team must be hoping for some kind of miracle. Underneath it all, I expect they are wondering what they were doing buying the land in the first place...