Aquind: Politicians and residents unite to oppose plan to dig up city to lay electricity cables

Viola Langley, one of the founders of grassroots campaign Let’s Stop Aquind, said: ‘There are more questions to be answered.

‘But people have a voice. You can sign our open letter, you can get your objections to the Planning Inspectorate and make it very clear that we are very concerned about the consequences of the digging and construction and the long-term effects it could have. It would be disturbing areas where wildlife habitats are. This is the wrong route.’

The open letter sent by Let’s Stop Aquind to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Business Secretary Grant Shapps at the beginning of March says: ‘Surely you know by now that our city is united against this dangerous project? From the allotment holders whose plots are vulnerable to drilling chemicals, to the businesses whose livelihoods will be threatened by gridlock from construction chaos, from the children who will be exposed to the pollution from years of tearing up our city, to the sports teams whose pitches will be closed for building sites, from the property owners whose homes are blighted by the route, to the dog walkers who will see Portsmouth’s precious green spaces dug up and fenced off… we reject the vandalism of our city for private profit.’

Portsmouth City Council leader Gerald Vernon-Jackson said that unity has been and will be key to the campaign.

‘The thing that has worked really well is that the campaign has been cross-party,’ he said. ‘That shows the strength of feeling in Portsmouth and we can build on different things that each party does well.’

Cllr Vernon-Jackson said the council had funded the legal case against Aquind and was helping to bring people together, while he praised the lobbying of the city’s MPs and the doggedness and determination of Let’s Stop Aquind.

Portsmouth South Labour MP Stephen Morgan previously raised a petition against Aquind that saw 6,000 people sign to protest against the plans.

He said: ‘I've made clear my concerns about the project on environmental grounds. Aquind’s plan would be devastating for Portsmouth’s precious marine wildlife, as well as birds and insects. It would cause long-term disruption to Portsmouth’s valued open spaces with the unmitigated loss of recreational space.

‘I've also consistently raised concerns in Parliament and with Ministers about the company’s concerningly opaque structure and finances, its ties with the Conservative Party and how the interconnector could pose a threat to our nation’s security.

‘It is imperative that ministers stand by the government’s decision in 2022 to scrap the project. At the time, the then Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said he was unable to conclude that the benefits of the proposed development would outweigh its adverse impacts on the local area. These facts remain unchanged. Portsmouth people remain united in our opposition against Aquind. The government was right to finally arrive at the correct decision to not approve it. For the sake of our environment, democracy and national security, it is vital that it stands by that decision’

Meon Valley Conservative MP Flick Drummond has written to Grant Shapps expressing her opposition to the scheme, saying: ‘“The original objections to this project still stand, and their weight is not diminished by the decision of the court. These include concerns about the siting of the convertor building and the impact of noise and disruption to local communities during construction and operation; the routing of the cable through environmentally-sensitive environments; the disruption to residents along the route of the cable in a very densely-populated area of Portsmouth and Waterlooville and the impact of this project of views from South Downs National Park southwards.

‘It has become clear the cable would not be leaving France from near Le Havre, opposite Portsmouth, but from somewhere near Dieppe, further along the coast. For this point of departure, it would make much more sense to bring the cable ashore in East Sussex, on a shorter subsea cable route and with the availability of network infrastructure.’

The scheme has also prompted many individuals to protest.

Robin Whitting, 78, of Cosham has written to the government, saying: ‘This is a heartfelt plea to try and persuade you that this proposed Aquind Interconnector is one of the most ill-conceived and destructive ‘plans’ that I, as a responsible, native inhabitant of the UK, have seen in many, many years, and if allowed to proceed will condemn thousands of people living and working in the Portsmouth and Waterlooville areas to many years of extra dust, air pollution, noise, traffic chaos, compulsory house purchases and aggravated antisocial living conditions in general.

‘To even consider letting a zero track-record company remove numerous listed trees; rip up the ground harbouring dormant toxic waste; severely restrict city road access on the eastern shoreline of the most populated peninsula on the south coast; cut through an important area of special scientific interest on Langstone Harbour; dig its way up Portsdown Hill and carve a trench through the densely populated London Road and East Hampshire countryside as far as Lovedean; adding to already exceptionally high pollution levels and creating many many months, if not years, of traffic chaos, all for the sake of bringing Non-Eco friendly nuclear power from France to our shores, is quite simply, an absolutely ludicrous scheme which simply cannot be justified on any rational level.’

Let’s Stop Aquind is holding the ‘Protect Portsmouth rally’ against Aquind on Saturday, April 22 in Guildhall Square between midday and 1pm as a final demonstration of feeling against the plan before the submissions to Grant Shapps close on April 28.

To have your say on the plan email [email protected]