Last week it was revealed all four regional shortlisted options are on our doorstep. Despite objectors' continued campaigning against 15,000 new homes, the Labour member continues to support such contentious schemes.

Accused of "bottling it" by not attending protest meetings tonight and on Tuesday, he counters by claiming an eco-town would attract much-needed affordable housing to first-time buyers facing out-of-reach property prices.

"There are nearly 2,000 people on Selby District Council's housing waiting list. The average price of a house in the district is about seven times the average income. Many young couples who have grown up in the district cannot afford to start a family here.

"In the past, I have joined local people in opposing excessive development in villages like Sherburn and South Milford, partly because no additional health, education or public transport came with the houses.

"The whole point about an eco-town, as well as an insistence on energy efficiency and affordable housing, is new infrastructure and services are built at the same time as the houses."

GVA Grimley, as consultants for the Leeds City Region board, has identified Willow Green near Eggborough and Kellington, Burn Airfield, Gascoigne Wood former drift mine at Sherburn and RAF Church Fenton as potentially suitable sites to be examined further next month, with a final decision due within weeks.

The chosen location could then be added to an existing 14-strong UK shortlist, which by autumn will be whittled down to a top ten by Minister for Housing and Planning Caroline Flint.

Mr Grogan added: "Obviously, this is not an easy process. It's particularly important any new eco-town is the appropriate size to fit in with existing development."

The Willow Green bid in particular has attracted concerted opposition from objectors, who claim the greenfield land does not fit government criteria and is completely unsuitable to sustain such large-scale housing development.

And it has now emerged private developer earmarked for the site, GMI Construction Group, is being investigated by the Office of Fair Trading over allegations of bid rigging and cover pricing under the Competition Act of 1998.

Company chiefs have been given the chance to make written and oral representations to help the trading watchdogs decide if competition law has been breached and, if so, what penalty they face.

See page 14 of this week's Selby Times to read the MP's full letter, along with readers' correspondence and full photo coverage of all local eco-town sites and protest meetings.