AN MP has sided with neighbours who have been outraged by the saga surrounding five luxury homes built without permission.

Bolton West representative Chris Green waded into the debate about the properties in Grundy Fold Farm, Horwich, after nearby residents contacted him.

The controversy began when Sparkle Developments began building houses on the site that were different to what was approved by Bolton Council.

Mr Green said: "Local people are quite rightly furious that this development has been allowed to happen — with both the developers for changing the plans so drastically and the council who has allowed this all to happen right under their nose without intervening.

"At a time when residents’ trust in the council is at an all-time low, talk of informal arrangements between the developer and council officers is very concerning and I hope that the Council conducts a full review into this."

Planning permission for the site was given in 2014 but Sparkle Developments began building homes that were a different size, design and siting.

They were advised to stop by Bolton Council several times from October but the company decided to carry on the work and submitted a retrospective planning application with the changes.

This was refused recently by the authority but councillors said a 'compromise' might be reached, meaning the buildings might not be completely knocked down.

A spokesman representing Sparkle Developments apologised to the planning committee but claimed they were given 'informal permission' from the authority's former head of planning Jon Berry.

But the council denied knowledge of any such agreement taking place.

Responding to the comment by Mr Green, a spokesman from Bolton Council said: "We are not aware of any evidence to substantiate these claims and it is not possible for the council to issue informal consent.

"The council did intervene when complaints were received about the work. We advised the developer to stop work on a number of occasions, and subsequently the developer submitted a retrospective planning application.

"Planning permission to retain the five dwellings was refused, and we are now considering the appropriate next steps to take.

"We would urge developers, landowners and applicants to always check if permission is required and to ensure that development is carried out in accordance with planning permissions and any other consents that are in place."

Planning committee member Bob Allen said before the application's refusal that he was 'not naive enough' to think the site would be restored to its former state.

And Cllr Nick Peel said he hoped 'some kind of compromise' could be worked out, as it is believed the houses, thought to be worth between £1.4million and £1.9million, have already been sold.

Neighbours were angered by the comments and by the developer.

Alan Ainsworth, who owns a property in Scant Row by Grundy Fold Farm, said: "I thought that this might happen because the council has got no guts.

"It’s absolutely disgusting. The Government have said we need affordable houses for people and then developers start building five or six-bedroom houses in green belt land.

"It is a total eyesore and these are £1 million houses. The whole thing is diabolical. Nobody would mind if they were building homes in keeping with the local area."