The Government must rethink eco town plans, where there is strong local authority opposition, council leaders have urged. The Local Government Association asked John Steel QC to refresh the opinion he gave in July 2008 on the eco town proposals, in which he concluded that ‘the Government is bypassing local democracy and planning processes to impose the schemes on the public'. Mr Steel still takes the view that the Government's plans remain ‘unfair, illogical and unreasonable', susceptible to judicial review and with a strong likelihood of being declared unlawful. Cllr Margaret Eaton, chairman of the LGA, said: ‘It is not the concept of eco towns that other local authorities object to, it is the way the Government is going about deciding where they will be built. Eco town schemes should not be imposed on people by central government.'