WINCHESTER's civic chief has accused the leading anti-Silver Hill campaigner of “undermining the democratic process.”

City council leader Rob Humby attacked his Tory party colleague Kim Gottlieb for the way he is challenging the £165m plans for the redevelopment of the city centre.

Cllr Gottlieb says the scheme is outdated and has launched his 'alternative vision' for the rundown area. He is seeking a judicial review of the scheme which is due to be considered by the planning committee next month.

Developer Henderson is proposing a scheme of shops and flats and wants to scrap the bus station, offices and affordable housing.

Cllr Humby, in a written answer to a question at the Council meeting last night, said: “Unlike Cllr Gottlieb I do not see it as my role to undermine the democratic process by promoting alternatives which have yet to be shown to be feasible.”

Cllr Gottlieb has written to several developers and said ten have written back to say they are interested in taking on the scheme.

Cllr Humby said: “I find it disappointing that Cllr Gottlieb has chosen to use substantial resources to try to ensure that a scheme his own council has supported over many years does not go ahead.”

Meanwhile Cllr Kim Gottlieb held a series of open 'conversation days' last Thursday, Friday and Saturday and invited the public to the Wessex Hotel to view CGI images of the scheme, discuss the development and fill in questionnaires with their views on potential alternatives.

Cllr Gottlieb said: “For him (Cllr Humby) to suggest that what I'm doing is undermining democracy suggests to me he needs a new dictionary. He has a very strange sense of democracy. This [the Wessex Hotel event] has been about as democratic as it can get.”