Key figures behind a bid for £24 million to turn Brighton and Hove into the greenest city have expressed their disappointment at missing out on the cash.

Brighton and Hove City Council was one of 30 local authorities invited to enter a national competition for the One Planet Eco City grant.

But despite being the country’s first Green-run council, city chiefs have now been told that Brighton and Hove’s bid was unsuccessful.

Bristol, London, Glasgow and Peterborough are the four cities still in the running for the cash.

Council leader Jason Kitcat said: “Naturally I’m very disappointed that, despite being shortlisted in the first round, we haven’t gone through to the final round.

“However our work to integrate smart city systems and encourage innovation continues.”

He added the bid process brought together “a fantastic range of local partners across all sectors”.

It comes five months after the local authority was handed £50,000 to develop the proposal.

The bid focused on Brighton and Hove becoming more environmentally-friendly.

One Planet status

City leaders believed this could be done while improving housing, transport, public health and the digital economy.

The aim was to turn Brighton and Hove into the first city in the world to gain One Planet status, which is aimed at reducing carbon emissions so people live within the available natural resources.

Among those involved were politicians, voluntary representatives and business leaders.

Brighton-based digital entrepreneur Greg Hadfield said: “Obviously, there will be some disappointment. It was, however, a privilege to help with such a high-quality and ambitious bid.

“I’m confident the work is only the beginning of articulating a strategy to ensure we use digital technologies to meet the needs of citizens, by building a prosperous and sustainable city.

“I look forward to learning from the experience of whichever is the winning city.”

Conservative councillor Geoffrey Theobald and Labour councillor Gill Mitchell agreed it was disappointing but added the local authority could build on the relationships which had been forged.

The winner will be announced in January.

See the latest news headlines from The Argus:

More news from The Argus

Follow @brightonargus

The Argus: Daily Echo on Facebook - facebook.com/southerndailyecho Like us on Facebook

The Argus: Google+ Add us to your circles on Google+