PLANS to build 900 homes on the site of Vosper Thornycroft in Southampton have been rejected as "rumours" by the leader of the city council.

But Labour leader June Bridle did not rule out the future possibility of homes being built on the shipbuilding premises providing jobs were also created.

Councillor Bridle said: "Nine hundred homes are not going to be built on that site. I have not seen any plan for any homes.

"It is just a rumour and you should not believe rumours."

Cllr Bridle was responding to reports about leaked minutes from a tempestuous Southampton Labour Party meeting, in which she was questioned about the possibility of putting up to 900 homes on the Vosper site.

She said: "We will expect the same level of employment to exist on the site after Vosper has gone.

"If a plan delivered 800 jobs and homes as well, we would be talking. The jobs are the key factor."

Next year Vopser Thornycroft is selling its Woolston home of the last 100 years on the Itchen waterfront and moving to new premises in Portsmouth. Its absence will leave a hole in the city's landscape and open up some prime land for development.

Under the Southampton City Plan the land will retain its industrial use, but Vosper has em-ployed Tibbalds Consultants to look at that and other uses for the site.

Cllr Bridle said: "In the city plan it is designated for marine-related jobs. We have given a strong indication that the site will retain marine jobs.

"The use of the land may be slightly different as employment demands are very different these days from what they used to be.

Cllr Bridle recognised the importance of the land and its location calling it "a superb piece of land with enormous potential".

She said: "We have a key deep-water shipbuilding site and we want to maintain that. We hope an employer will come along and maintain the link but Tibbalds are looking at the options.

"Any development there has to be done in conjunction with the city plan. But Vosper Thorny-croft may break the site up into several parts."

A spokesman for Vosper confirmed the land would be sold to a developer as yet unknown.