A national park in the South Downs would turn the area into an environmental museum and damage the Sussex economy, according to a trio of Tory MPs.
Howard Flight, Andrew Tyrie and Nigel Waterson told a public inquiry there would be a democratic deficit if councils lost planning powers to a national park authority.
Mr Tyrie, who represents Chichester, said the Downs were different from other national parks, usually in remote and wilderness areas.
He said: "This is a fundamentally different landscape. It is a landscape in which urban communities and large villages are active and economically vibrant.
"People do not want to live in a national park museum in my constituency."
The MPs criticised the Countryside Agency's consultation, which they said had been "inadequate" and not involved enough local people.
Mr Waterson, who represents Eastbourne, said the Downs had always been considered different from other national parks when the proposal had been examined in the past.
Countryside Agency barrister Robert Griffiths QC said a national park was a national asset and it was right a national body controlled it.
He said the Downs met the landscape and recreational criteria, the two key tests for a park, and there had been plenty of opportunities for the public to give their views.
The inquiry is due to run until September, with a final decision expected in 2005.
Monday December 15, 2003
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