King's Lynn incinerator plan to be examined

Norfolk County Council has said "highly controversial" plans for an incinerator will be scrutinised in public.

The authority has signed a £500m contract with Cory Wheelabrator for the proposed power and recycling centre in Saddlebow, King's Lynn.

The move sparked outrage at the borough council in west Norfolk, where 65,500 residents had voted against the plan.

The decision to award the contract will examined by the cabinet scrutiny committee at County Hall on Tuesday.

Committee chairman Paul Morse said: "As well as Cory Wheelabrator's proposals the committee will be looking at the process by which cabinet reached its decision.

"Clearly this has become a highly controversial issue and people will expect a searching examination of the decision and I anticipate a vigorous debate."

The committee has the power to "call in" decisions taken by the cabinet and can recommend that these decisions are re-examined.

The cabinet awarded the contract on 7 March, stating that the plant was needed to stop waste going to landfill and to generate energy.

On Thursday, hundreds of people protested outside a special meeting of the Borough Council of King' s Lynn and West Norfolk, which had been called to discuss the county council decision.

Borough councillors condemned the county' council's "undemocratic" move and recommended that the government should look at the case.