A CONTROVERSIAL plan to introduce 8,000 new homes into Gwynedd and Anglesey has passed by the most meagre of margins.

On Friday, the council voted to accept a Joint Local Development Plan but required the council chair to submit a casting vote as the final count was level.

The fiercely debated Bill, which dictates how land and jobs in the counties will be organised for a 15 year period, deeply divided the councillors present with 30 councillors voting against adopting the plan, 30 voting in favour, four abstentions and 10 councillors absent.

The plan was carried on the casting vote of the council chair, Plaid Cymru Cllr Annwen Daniels, Blaenau Ffestiniog.

There were shouts of ‘Shame!’ as the result was recorded, interspersed with a smattering of applause.

Advocates of the plan suggest that the council had little choice but accept the terms in order to protect land and jobs from developers whereas opponents suggest that adopting the plan could see the number of Welsh speakers in the counties “drop by two per cent”.

On Monday, Anglesey Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of the LDP plan.

Read the full story and reaction in Thursday’s north editions of the Cambrian News