A CONSULTATION into Eastleigh's controversial local plan - which sets out space for 15,000 new homes in the borough - has been extended due to an IT problem.

Eastleigh Borough Council says it is facing high levels of traffic to its website.

As a result, it has extended the deadline for the public to have their say on how land in the borough will be developed until 2036.

A statement on the council website says the deadline has been extended until August 8.

It says: "We are currently experiencing high levels of traffic on our Local Plan consultation site and we are aware that some people are having troubles with submitting their responses.

"In recognition of the difficulties people have been experiencing, a decision has been taken to extend the consultation by 48 hours. Comments will therefore need to be submitted by midnight on Wednesday 8 August.

"For those who are currently experiencing a “proxy error”, we advise that you try refreshing the page or come back to the consultation later.

"For those having an error with their final submission, please email your Response ID to local.plan@eastleigh.gov.uk and we will manually submit your response for you.

"You can find all information and how to respond on our Local Plan pages. Sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience in this matter."