WITH uncertainty surrounding Petersfield's future in the new South Downs National Park, town councillors issued a firm response to Defra's inspector on Monday. The message emanating from the Festival Hall was that the town and its surrounding villages must be included within the park and retain its Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) status. Should either – or both – be lost, the sprawling countryside could be at the mercy of developers, eager to fill land with more housing. Initially, councillor Chris Jenner pondered an alternative. "Do we still, as town council, wish to be included in the national park? I for one would be quite happy to be outside the national park as long as we can keep our current AONB status. "And I've spoken to a lot of people, including people around this table, that would support that view," he said. Mayor Paul Molloy outlined the situation facing the town council, citing the AONB status as "one of the firmly contentious parts of the document". "It is firmly believed we would probably lose that status if we leave the park. I can't speak with any great depth about this, but that is my understanding. Town Clerk Neil Fitch said: "We cannot be sure, is the honest answer. If we are outside the park, there is absolutely no guarantee that we will retain AONB status. "For that to happen there would need to be a new AONB designated area to take in the western Weald and the area that the interim inspectors recommendations designated status. "It is quite possible that they will remove the whole of the AONB status for anything that is left outside of the national park. In a thinly veiled warning, he continued: "So you've really got to move forward on the basis that if you are outside the park, you've not got AONB – you can't guarantee it." Spencer Wisdom made an impassioned plea, firmly outlining his position to the possibility of Petersfield becoming a clone town. "I personally believe that Petersfield should be in the national park, if there's going to be a national park. "I would argue that this is a rural town still, a market town, and it aspires to continue to be a rural market town. "If the villages surrounding us are going to be in the national park, I think it is important that Petersfield throws in its weight with the rural parts that make it up. "I think remaining part of the national park would go a long way to making sure that Petersfield doesn't become a clone town." Initially, Defra had enforced a controversial deadline of August 12 for a response but saw fit to extend this to September 24.