DEVELOPERS have no plans to pay back millions of pounds that could help pay for a new junction on the A40 at Witney.

As reported last week, Persimmon Homes and Taylor Wimpey, the companies behind the Madley Park housing estate, are to be approached by county council leader Ian Hudspeth to ask for £3.6m back.

The cash was originally paid by the developers to the council as a contribution towards the town’s infrastructure.

But the council had to refund it under planning laws because it had not spent the money within a 10-year time limit.

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It was originally earmarked for the failed Cogges Link Road project to ease traffic but Mr Hudspeth said on Wednesday the money should fund an alternative scheme to build new slip-roads at Shores Green.

Persimmon managing director Steve Roche said the contributions, made under a section 106 agreement, were made specifically to build the link road. It was rejected by the Department of Transport two years ago.

He said: “The planning agreement required that these contributions must be returned to the developers if the Cogges Link Road was not built. Whilst the balance of unspent funds has now been returned to the developers, the majority of this had to be paid back to the original landowners.”

Taylor Wimpey spokesman Ed O’Mara said: “The Section 106 payments which were made by Taylor Wimpey towards the proposed Cogges Link Road were designated by Oxfordshire County Council for that specific purpose only, and at the current time we have no plans to make this particular portion of funding available to the local authority for an alternative use.”

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