A FIVE-DAY hearing to determine the fate of a contentious project to build more than 1,200 homes on green fields at Wolborough, Newton Abbot, finished this week.

Government planning inspector Frances Mahoney had been overseeing the public inquiry at Teignbridge Council’s Forde House HQ to rule on the application after the district authority failed to make a decision.

She heard evidence from developers, Teignbridge, Wolborough Residents’ Association, concerned residents and Abbotskerswell Parish Council.

The inquiry into the plans – earmarked for 165-acres of farmer Anthony Rew’s land – started in March before adjourning until Tuesday.

Here is how the fifth and final day went…

A CRUCIAL £1m cash injection to help keep the struggling NHS afloat would just be used to balance the health service’s poor financial books, it has been claimed.

Heath chiefs are calling for the major six-figure lifeline to help them cope with the influx of people moving into the 1,210 new homes.

But David Lock QC, a former MP and barrister specialising in NHS law, reckoned the huge cash boost wouldn’t be spent on helping sick and injured residents.

Instead he thought the cash would be spent fixing Torbay and South Devon NHS Trust’s balance sheets as it was in a ‘financial state.’

Mr Lock, for the developers, told Wednesday’s hearing: ‘The NHS cannot project what the £1m would be spent on. It would be put into a big pot and just disappear. It will be going to balance sheets.’

But Paul Cooper, the NHS trust’s financial director, revealed the cash handout from developers would be used to pay for extra staff to look after more patients.

He warned the hearing: ‘An increase in population is going to lead to an increase in demand for NHS services.

‘And because of the population growth we will have to put steps in place to mitigate. We will need to provide more capacity for patients or we won’t be able to provide quality services.’

Mr Cooper revealed the £1m would cover a shortfall in NHS funding, which wouldn’t be released until two years after the huge housing estate was built.

‘Funding doesn’t come in until two years after development and we need money to cover services until that cash comes in,’ he told inspector Mahoney.

Barrister Annabel Graham Paul, for the NHS, said: ‘The £1m will pay for staff to treat the additional patients who will come through our doors before funding is received.

‘There will be an impact on waiting times and the quality of care being delivered. It is not rocket science to work out that the longer someone waits for treatment, the longer the prognosis will be.’

And she added: ‘There is a clear direct impact on health as a result of growth in population.’

Inspector Mahoney will write a report based on the evidence she heard during the five-day hearing before making a recommendation of approval or refusal to the Secretary of State – who will have the final say.