Although East Lindsey District Council has been forced to retract its application following a barrage of public protest, the MP said it was unclear whether a local authority had any power to veto an action by the Secretary of the State.

He said: "Now that East Lindsey has been included on the list, it may be out of the hands of the council to blank it out."

In the Commons on Wednesday (July 4), the Louth and Horncastle MP demanded: "Can we have an assurance that no devices in the planning system will be used to overcome the wishes of the overwhelming majority of local people not to have an eco-town?"

Housing minister Caroline Flint replied: "It is its choice to remove this option from the list but the local authority will still have to recognise that it has a housing supply and affordability problem that it must address.

"The problem will not go away even though it has removed its bid for an eco-town."

East Lindsey District Council has not divulged the contents of its letter to the minister regarding its withdrawal of the bid.