The Government today cleared the way for controversial plans to move the listed former LMS station in Oxford from its Park End Street site.

Nick Raynsford, minister for London and construction, said he would not order a public inquiry into plans to pull down and rebuild the former London Midland and Scottish Railway station and move it to a railway heritage site at Quainton, Buckinghamshire.

But Oxford University will need to secure the eviction of protesters, who are currently occupying the building in protest, before it can press ahead. The county and city councils want the building shifted so that Park End Street can be widened as part of the Oxford Transport Strategy.

Part of the site will also be used for the University's new £45m Said Business School. When the University bought the land, it inherited an obligation to move the building.

Mr Raynsford said: "I recognise this case has caused local controversy, but, as in all such cases, a suitable balance has been struck between conservation, environmental and economic factors, safety and engineering feasibility."

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