THE leader of New Forest District Council has refused to pledge that RAF Hythe will remain solely an employment site when the US quits the base.

About 210 skilled civilian workers are to lose their jobs at the 11-acre shipyard, which services and repairs American military boats.

The base, in Shore Road, Hythe, is one of the largest employers on the Waterside and contributes £4.5m to the UK economy.

The question of the future of the site was pressed by Hythe Liberal Democrat councillor Maureen Robinson at a Cabinet meeting.

Cllr Robinson stressed fears the base would be handed over to developers and said residents wanted to see it retained only for employment.

Conservative council leader Mel Kendall, pictured, said: "I'm not going to commit to that, because we can't."

He said a scheme may have to be drawn up that could involve a mix of housing, including affordable homes, and shops to complement businesses.

The mix had proved successful in other places where large employers left a lot of land, Mr Kendall said.

He said it would be wrong to "box" the council in, but said in general terms the council would support the continuation of employment if it was "sustainable".

The site is designated for employment use in the current local plan, but the council must contribute 207 new homes each year towards an annual target of 29,000 in the south-east until 2026.

Of the 4,138 homes earmarked for the district, 1,538 are to be in Totton and the Waterside.

The MoD said it would carry out a thorough survey and consider all options to determine the future of the site once it was handed back by the Americans in September.

New Forest East MP Dr Julian Lewis has written to US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld urging the closure plan to be postponed until next year or abandoned.

In his letter the MP outlined the economic case for retaining, saying an audit published on March 13 recommended that proposals to axe the facility should be scrapped.

Mr Lewis and Southampton Labour MPs John Denham and Alan Whitehead have also appealed to new Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett to press the Americans for a rethink.