Jill Hope 'factually incorrect' over stadium plans - Saints

Northampton Saints have dismissed criticism of their plans to redevelop Franklin's Gardens.
Liberal Democrat campaigner Jill Hope had branded the club 'greedy', saying Northampton Borough Council was fully supportive of proposals to build a new stand.
Writing in the West Hunsbury Focus newsletter, of which she is editor, Mrs Hope also accused the rugby club's chief executive Allan Robson of making statements that are 'simply not true'.
She said the borough council is keen to work with the Saints and has been since November 2009, but that the real issue is money.
'The Saints want to be given the car park so they can sell it to Asda. The car park doesn't belong to the council,' she wrote.
'At last the truth is out there. We all want the new stand built. Stop being greedy and just get on with it.'
But today a Saints spokesman called her comments 'factually incorrect and missing the point'.
He said: "The Saints do not ‘want to be given the car park so they can sell it to ASDA’.
"The Saints actually have a 99-year lease on the land as a long-term tenant. Nor has anyone from the club ever said that the freehold of the car park belongs to anyone other than the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA), which needs to give consent as landlords for the land to be changed from a car park to a food store.
"This has been stymied by the town centre first policy of the Liberal Democrat leadership of Northampton Borough Council, which is overtly against out-of-town retail of any kind.
"The HCA’s ‘one voice’ policy of dealing with local authorities means that they will not go against this, thereby rendering any planning application pointless as even if it were approved the store could still not be built as permission would not be given by the HCA.
"The club therefore needs the borough council to tell the HCA that it has the freedom to come to a conditional agreement with us that the store could be built subject to the normal planning processes being followed.
"Where Ms Hope is missing the point is that the club’s management believes that the increased revenues that would come from a larger Franklin’s Gardens could be better spent than on interest and capital repayments to banks.
"The club’s management wants to instead invest in the playing department – helping increase the chances of bringing further success to Northampton in the coming few years instead of having this success be seen in other towns like Milton Keynes – and on other aspects of the Saints’ day-to-day work, such as that done by the community department that helps thousands of young people throughout the town and county every year."
And borough councillor Tony Clarke, an Independent representing Castle Ward, accused Mrs Hope of viewing the situation through 'yellow tinted glasses'.
He drew a comparison between the treatment of the Saints and that of Northampton Town, of which he was a board member for 10 years.
Mr Clarke said: "Our plans have equally been thwarted by the lack of vision of successive councils of all political colours.
"It amaze me that when the Saints or the Cobblers want to use development cash to pay for upgraded facilities the Lib Dems scream loud and hard about any potential damage to the town centre, and yet both Weston Favell Centre and Sainsbury's plans for expansion at Sixfields have been supported by the council."
He added that stadium:mk in Milton Keynes where Saints will play their Heineken Cup quarter final game was built with proceeds from the development of an Asda and Ikea.
"The Liberal Democrats should learn to keep quiet over planning issues, stop showboating their town centre first policy in the press, which could lead to costly appeals and simply talk to both clubs to see how a compromise can be reached," he added.
"The truth is that the council has done nothing to support in any way any of the three professional sports clubs in the town, does even less for amateur sport, like athletics, and does not deserve the prestige that is gained for the town by our numerous sportsmen and women.
"Thank god that for Jill Hope and the Liberal Democrats the game is well and truly up for them in May."
The exchange is the latest in a long running argument between the Saints and Northampton Borough Council.
The club believes the authority is concentrating too much of its time and money on the town centre, neglecting the development of Franklin's Gardens in the process.
The council deny these claims.