Action Group Raises £18,000 To Fight Prison Plan
Written by HFM News on 5th August 2022
Campaigners have raised £18,000 to help fight plans to build a ‘super-prison’ near Market Harborough.
People opposed to the 1,700-capacity jail going up in the countryside near the existing Gartree Prison has been pledging cash to pay for legal representation at a Public Inquiry in October.
The Gartree Action Group is hoping to raise £25,000 to fund a Barrister and other experts when it goes head to head with the Ministry of Justice.
The Inquiry is going ahead after the government body appealed Harborough District Council’s decision to refuse planning permission for the jail because of the impact it would have on the countryside and as the proposal is in contravention of Harborough’s Local Plan.
A on-line fundraising page is receiving donations and events to raise money are being planned, including a charity raffle or auction.
Diana Cook heads up the action group and spoke to HFM:
The area where the prison would have been built. Pic: Andy Carpenter
Harborough MP Neil O’Brien has lodged a formal objection with the Planning Inspectorate ahead of the inquiry.
He told HFM why:
