WORK will begin later this year on a new swimming pool for Durham City after councillors last night granted permission for the £11m building.

Members of Durham City Council's development control committee gave the go-ahead for the 25-metre pool, which is expected to open to the public in the summer of 2008.

However, the pool, which is being built by the Liberal Democrat-controlled authority, was immediately caught up in political controversy, with the city's Labour MP raising concerns about its city centre location and potential traffic problems.

The complex - which includes competition and learner pools, changing village, sauna facilities, sports hall, dance studio and a fitness suite - is being proposed for a site currently used as playing fields attached to Durham Sixth Form Centre, off Freeman's Place.

While she welcomed the decision to build a new pool, MP Roberta Blackman-Woods said: "I think a more suitable location could have been found.

"The development will undoubtedly bring more traffic into the city centre and will add to existing traffic problems.

"Secondly, I am disappointed that environmentally-friendly measures have not been put in place to make the building as green as possible."

However, LibDem spokeswoman Carol Woods insisted that the success of the new park-and-ride scheme, coupled with existing parking at The Sands, meant traffic was not an issue.

Councillor Woods said: "There isn't a huge problem and the county council, which is the highways authority, has not objected, so we are happy to go ahead."

She also insisted that the building would come close to being carbon neutral because of energy efficiency measures built into the design.

Labour Councillor John Hepplewhite described the building as a box-like structure with an awning and canopy "very much like a caravan".

He said: "No matter what the consulting architects say, this building is not good enough to stand less than a quarter of mile away from a world heritage site."

He added that access would be difficult for people travelling from the fringe areas of the district.

The pool is a long-awaited replacement for the existing 1930s baths in Elvet Waterside and has been designed by architects William Saunders Partnership, of Leeds.