Universal theme park promoters say it will generate £50bn for UK

EUROPE'S biggest theme park, planned to open in a former brickworks site north of London by 2030, will give the UK economy a £50 billion boost if it gets the go ahead, its promoters claimed today.

- Jonathan Prynn

The Universal theme park and resort - the first in the UK from the Hollywood studio - is being lined up for a 476 acre site near Bedford and scheduled to be open by around 2030 at a cost estimated to be in the "mid single digit" billions of pounds.

It is hoped the 365-days-a-year attraction, which would also include a 500-room hotel, will draw millions of visitors a year many of whom will travel from and stay in London, just an hour from Bedford by train.

A full planning application, through a process known as a special development order, is expected to be submitted to Government by the end of the summer.