A PUBLIC inquiry that will shape the future of towns and villages across the New Forest gets under way today.

The district council has received 1,300 objections to its new local plan, which is at the centre of a battle between conservationists and developers.

The protests will be heard at a three-month inquiry organised by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Planning inspector Roland Punshon will take evidence from companies that aim to build on rural land and countryside campaigners who want open spaces to be preserved.

The far-reaching inquiry will be held at the civic offices in Christchurch Road, Ringwood.

It will examine almost every aspect of the local plan, which sets out the council's views on how various sites should be used.

A council spokesman said: "The potential use of Lynes Farm, near Ringwood, as employment land has sparked the biggest single number of objections - 650. A lot of people living near the site don't want to see it built on.

"Recommendations to use various sites for residential development have resulted in similar representations."

The spokesman said Mr Punshon was unlikely to submit his recommendations until the middle of next year at the earliest.

He added: "His recommendations are not binding on the council, but we would have to have very strong grounds for not accepting them."

Today's opening session will take the form of a round-table discussion on the thorny issue of housing and land supply.