A new town for Oxfordshire should be built on the site of the former Upper Heyford airbase, according to county council leader Keith Mitchell.

Cllr Mitchell spoke out as the debate grows over where thousands of new homes should be built.

The existing Structure Plan for the county provides for 35,500 new homes by 2011, but the Government wants to see an additional 12,650 houses, and Cllr Mitchell said the former military base was a prime site for development.

The plan is currently being reviewed, looking forward to 2016, and the search is now on for the best locations for new homes.

Cllr Mitchell said 5,000 homes could be built at the former American airbase, to create a new town for the county.

He claimed that a new town at the base, now known as Heyford Park, would relieve pressure from the Government and house builders.

He added: "There will be some people who disagree with me, who believe that the development of this site is hugely inappropriate because there are some nice villages nearby.

"There were once 10,000 people occupying the base, so it is an area that has been heavily populated.

"There would have to be about 5,000 houses to justify a certain level of infrastructure."

His views attracted immediate opposition from those who believe development should be limited.

County councillor Catherine Fulljames, who represents the Ploughley division, said she was in favour of 1,000 homes on the base -- the limit suggested in the current Structure Plan -- but added that there should not be any more.

"One thousand homes would bring about 2,500 people, and the roads in the area could not take any more," she added.

"The Cherwell Valley Parishes group, which includes 22 parishes, are totally opposed to a new town at Heyford."

Margaret Mason, chairman of Steeple Aston parish council, which is a member of the Cherwell Valley Parishes, said: "If 5,000 homes were built at the airbase it would be over- development."

However, Keith Watson, managing director of North Oxfordshire Consortium, which represents Bryant Homes, Westbury Homes and Wimpey Homes, said: "There is the potential for more housing on the site and we are very encouraged to hear what Keith Mitchell has said."