A ROW over the M4 relief road continues, with one Gwent AM describing the consultation to choose a route as a “sham”.

Nick Ramsay, Assembly Member for Monmouth, suggested that the choice of the so-called ‘black route’ to the south of Newport was influenced by the fact that the Welsh Government owned more than £12million worth of property along the route – an accusation the economy minister, Edwina Hart AM, strenuously denied.

Mr Ramsay said: “Why wasn’t the blue route included in the consultation as well? The public are losing confidence, as Assembly Members clearly are.

“If it was indeed the case that behind the scenes the government was buying land to make this specific route the preferred option, the public consultation process would be completely valueless.”

But Edwina Hart replied: “I make it absolutely clear that Welsh Government land ownership does not influence the selection of a preferred route corridor. That is the end of the matter.”

Newport West’s Tory candidate for Westminster, Nick Webb said: “When a very large sum of money is to be spent in one part of the country, it is vital that AMs from across Wales buy into the idea. The failure of economy minister Edwina Hart to publish the evidence base for the relief road has undermined hope of doing so. My message to Edwina Hart is ‘stop being secretive and publish’.”

Mr Webb also expressed surprise at John Griffiths’ opposition to a motorway-standard relief road after he backed it while part of the cabinet.

Labour AM for Newport East John Griffiths said: “I have been consistent since I was a local councillor. It’s not that I don’t recognise the difficulties the M4 is currently inflicting, but I think a public transport solution is the way forward. We could also get more freight off the road. We all know about the very serious environmental consequences of building a six-lane motorway through the environmentally important Gwent Levels.”

A spokesman for the First Minister, Carwyn Jones said: “This is a nonsense from two Tories looking for a cheap headline. People in Gwent won’t be impressed by this sort of attitude, what they want is progress on key economic issues. All the relevant information and evidence has been in the public domain since July and due process has been followed. The Tories are being completely duplicitous. On one hand you have George Osborne saying work should start tomorrow, and on the other you have Tory candidates wanting a freeze on the process.”