The Secretary of State for Transport has today announced that he will be granting a development consent order for the Northampton Gateway strategic rail freight interchange in South Northamptonshire.

I know that many residents will be extremely disappointed that this development will now go ahead, and I will be discussing with the local action group what other options may still be available to them. I would like to recognise the herculean efforts of the action group and their coordinators in putting forward such a strong case against Northampton Gateway over the past several years.

We now wait for the decision by Ashfield Land, following the recent ruling by the Planning Inspectorate not to grant their request for an extension to the start of their examination process, as to whether they will bring forward their coterminous application for their Rail Central SRFI.

You can read the Secretary of State’s decision in full here, and please do not hesitate to get in touch if you have any specific questions or concerns.