HPTC - The End - The Sun

By R. Nadeswaran and Terence Fernandez

PUTRAJAYA (April 10, 2008): The much-maligned proposed High Performance Training Centre (HPTC) in Brickendonbury outside London has been shelved and buried for good.

Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Ismail Sabri Yaakob drove the final nail into the coffin today when he said there would be no appeals as they would be fruitless.

But more importantly, he assured the public that extravagance and unnecessary expenditure will be things of the past as all projects and programmes - present and future - that involved huge expenses will be reviewed or stopped.

Regrettably, he will not be able to save RM17 million – the "bidding fee" for the Champions Youth Cup (CYC) which Malaysia will host in August. The minister has no choice but to honour the commitments made by his predecessor.

Ismail said as the proposal to develop the Tun Abdul Razak Rubber Research Centre into the HPTC has been rejected by the East Herts Council, there was no use in pursuing the matter any further.

"Even if we appealed, I am certain the council will give the same answer. I’m sure the council has its reasons for not approving it, and if we were to appeal, this process would incur more cost," Ismail said at a specially-called media conference in his ministry to address the HPTC issue.

The council had last October cited green belt zoning and the existence of abundant sports facilities as reasons for rejecting the proposal.

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