TWO allotments, land at Twickenham Rifle Club and a site on Petersham Road are amongst several open spaces to be sold off by the council in order to raise funds.

The list of council-owned areas to disposed of' for residential development is outlined in a document containing proposed changes to the Unitary Development Plan, the planning blueprint for Richmond upon Thames.

The sites are currently designated as Metropolitan Open Land, but the Conservatives say they are not used as public open space and will raise substantial revenue for the cash-strapped council.

They include the Mereway Allotments in Twickenham; Terrace Yard in Terrace Gardens, Richmond; Marsh Farm Allotments, Twickenham, Twickenham Rifle Club, Craneford Way West; Craneford Way East and a site on the Petersham Road.

Some of the money from the sell-offs would be invested in the borough's council-owned parks.

Council leader Tony Arbour said: "All of these pieces of land are disused and some of them are eyesores. We think this is a more intelligent way to provide the best services.

"Would people rather have this derelict land or allotments that no one has used for a long time or have services cut and taxes raised?"

The move has been criticised by the Liberal Democrats who themselves came under fire towards the end of their administration for plans to sell of various patches of open land.

They came up with a three year programme of sell-offs which included Langholm Lodge in Richmond and Alexandra Hall in Mortlake.

Opposition leader Cllr Serge Lourie said: "We were accused of being about to sell off open spaces but the Conservatives have just continued our programme and will raise £11million in the next two financial years.

"It is significant that some of the disposals are things that we would have not done. It is quite clear that they are ruthlessly pursuing a policy of selling assets for maximum value by selling for residential development. We were criticised by them for a far smaller programme."

Cllr Arbour countered: "The total amount of Metropolitan Open Land on the list isn't going to change. What the Liberal Democrats were criticised for was for selling off parkland to which there was public access. We don't have a single proposal to do that.

"The Liberal Democrats tackled any money problems which they had in the council in a single way - by cutting services and raising taxes. We are seeking to raise funds other than by raising taxes."

The news has worried environmentalists who say the UDP is becoming more car-friendly and less concerned with sustainability.

The revisions allow more car parking spaces to be added in new developments and schools and they remove the policy relating to car free/limited car developments.