Loch Lomond major tourism development refused planning permission

The Lomond Banks proposal, would have seen a significant mixed-use scheme built at West Riverside and Woodbank House in Balloch.

The plans included hotels, holiday lodges, restaurants, a leisure pool, waterpark, spa, and the restoration of Woodbank House.

A long-established independent conservation charity, which has consistently supported the project, said the development would have had “zero negative impact on the special qualities of Loch Lomond and its wider surrounding area.”

The group argued that it would have helped relieve visitor pressure elsewhere in the area and offered potential conservation and economic benefits.

questioned the grounds for refusal, including concerns about ancient woodland and flooding.

He claimed the site contains almost no ancient woodland, most of it having been cleared prior to the 19th century, and said flooding concerns could have been addressed at a later planning stage.

John Urquhart said: "We are disappointed, but not much surprised by Mr McKee’s decision to refuse the Lomond Banks planning application—conveniently before the Holyrood elections in May, in what we suspect is a politically motivated gambit which stands against good sense and all the planning evidence.

"The Green Party has very successfully turned this planning application into a political football, with 'Saving Loch Lomond' never being much about the merits of the planning facts, but much more about whipping up a sensational vote catching narrative.

 "It is a great pity there has been so little exploration of the many economic, heritage and habitat benefits which could and should flow from such a proposal.

"The National Park’s planners have seemed largely blind to that, and the scheme’s huge potential has never been properly examined.

"Instead, many people have swallowed the populist 'Save Loch Lomond' bait, including it seems, the National Park’s Board."