Green light for Frasers Group HQ plans on green belt

Plans for a huge new headquarters for retail, sport and intellectual property giant Frasers Group on green belt land in Warwickshire have been given the go-ahead by Rugby Borough Council, it was reported.
The proposed site near the village of Ansty for the campus style development spans almost 280 acres and plans reportedly include a 100-room hotel, swimming pool, warehouses, and research and development facilities.
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Frasers Group said it would boost jobs in the local borough by 15% and could boost the local economy by 10% and create facilities for the local community to enjoy.
The company, which owns Sports Direct and House of Fraser, said it has outgrown its current site at Shirebrook, Derbyshire.
The council reportedly received around 200 objections to the proposals, including from eight parish councils.
At the committee meeting, Warwickshire councillor Adrian Warwick had called for the decision to be deferred, it was reported, saying he believed "policies, the green belt and these people in these villages" mattered more than money.
A representative from the Save Ansty Green Belt campaign group had also reportedly urged councillors to look at alternatives sites not in the green belt.
But councillor Tony Freeman reportedly said the authority had to show ambition and grasp the opportunity.
"This sort of stuff doesn't come along every couple of years, it comes along once in a generation, so it needs to be very carefully considered," he said.
The planning committee voted seven to five in favour of the application, it was reported.