The Gazette reported (29th October 29, 'Scheme has made it difficult to submit proposals') that Premier Inn's first foray into Ambleside, at Hill Top, ended with the developers pulling out amid a furore that bed and breakfast establishments could be put out of business.

There may well have been opposition but the real reason for the withdrawal of the proposal was that it would have necessitated the demolition of one of Ambleside's historic buildings, opposed by English Heritage.

In addition, the access from the Kirkstone Pass road was appalling, and the Lake District National Park Authority's plan for the development of the university's surplus buildings included no reference to hotel development on that site.

The new proposal, on a green field site, with drainage problems, has little to commend it, either. The traffic problems on the A591, and in Ambleside, are ever on the increase, as seen during the summer and at half-term.

An 88-bedroom hotel, largely catering for motorists, and following other recent planning consents in and around the town, is not going to improve the situation.

Tim Brown

Ambleside