Campaigners believe the loss of hundreds of AstraZeneca jobs at Alderley Park has strengthened their fight against plans to build new houses on green belt land.

The pharmaceutical firm has announced it will close its research and development facility at Alderley Park, with up to 700 workers facing possible redundancy and hundreds more being transferred to Cambridge by 2016.

And campaigners fighting plans to build on green belt around Wilmslow and Handforth say that hundreds of houses will become available because workers losing their jobs will leave the area.

Cheshire East has said that Wilmslow needs 400 new homes to be built in the next 20 years and is also proposing to build up to 2,300 homes on land east of the bypass at Handforth. But David Lewis, from green belt campaign group Residents of Wilmslow, said: “In a year or two, a considerable number of houses will be up for sale which would provide at least the 400 houses said to be needed in Wilmslow, removing the need for new housing on brown or greenfield sites.

“While the government may be pressing Cheshire East to provide the same number of houses across the borough this makes no sense at the local level.

“The effect of AstraZeneca’s decision to move out of the area coincides with growing unrest across the country about the government’s plans for widespread housing development on greenfield.

“Nobody with a modicum of economic sense really believes the economy can be turned round simply by building houses.”

Toni Fox, from ‘Hands off Handforth Green Belt’, said: “The AstraZeneca job losses and relocations could have quite a substantial affect on the housing needs in the area.”

Wilmslow Trust is also calling on Cheshire East council to take the exodus from AstraZeneca’s Alderley Park site into account in formulating its housing plans.

Mr Lewis added: “From the Wilmslow Trust annual general meeting last week came a strong call for Wilmslow Town and Cheshire East councillors to take heed of the wishes of residents not to build in the green belt.”