MILLIONAIRE entrepreneur Duncan Bannatyne has launched a fresh attack on Darlington planners, insisting their lack of vision is preventing an influx of new jobs.

The tycoon, whose fitness chain headquarters is based in the town, has repeatedly seen efforts to develop a prime area of land for leisure use thwarted by the borough council.

Earlier this year, his Bannatyne Fitness firm had a bid to establish a 60-bed hotel, casino and 1,000-seat bingo hall in Haughton Road rejected by councillors.

The proposals would have created 180 jobs, but borough council planning chiefs ruled that trade would have been taken away from the town centre.

The land in question - close to the Bannatyne Fitness Club - is earmarked for industrial use in local plans. Mr Bannatyne has appealed to the Government and eagerly awaits an inspector's verdict.

Meanwhile, he is pressing ahead with the opening of a £5m casino and a Moroccan-style bar in Newcastle.

He said: "We'll continue opening new ventures and creating jobs in parts of the country where the planners are sensible. I think the planners and councillors have an amazing and incredible lack of ability in Darlington to assess viability.

"They keep going on about projects that are not viable for any sort of employment use; they're bizarre people."

Mr Bannatyne, who collected an OBE last week for services to business and charity, has criticised the council in the past.

He is adamant that the land, on a key route into Darlington, will remain an undeveloped eyesore if the council continues to reject such schemes.

However, the council insists that its efforts to regenerate Darlington are thriving, particularly in marketing the town as the gateway to the Tees Valley.

A spokesman said: "Our gateway scheme - where we have Morton Palms, the Central Park development and West Park - has widely been described as visionary.

"It will create thousands of new jobs and bring millions of pounds worth of new investment to Darlington."