Residents are being urged to mount a protest via council tax

Cant Ceredigion says it has already secured the support of dozens of people for the campaign who plan to withhold part of their payments.

The protest centres on the authority's Unitary Development Plan which includes a proposal to build around 4,988 new homes over the next 15 years.

Ceredigion Council defended the plan saying it was drawn up in line with correct procedures and has warned that non-tax payers run the risk of court action.

The council has not consulted on this Jen Llewellyn, Cant Ceredigion

Opponents have said the figure is far too high and that it would vastly exceed local housing needs.

Supporters are being asked to retain 5% of their council tax bills - on the basis that this amount would ordinarily go to the council's planning department.

They say the new homes plan would lead to a raft of problems.

They include an upsurge in so-called "incomers" and a further increase in property prices, forcing many young people out of the market and the area.

In turn, there are fears this would lead to damaging affect to the local economy and marginalisation of the Welsh language.

"We are calling for an independent local housing need survey, the council has not consulted on this," says Jen Llewellyn of Cant Ceredigion.

"We want drastic action, the Unitary Plan withdrawn and an independent housing need survey.

"The area's infrastructure, in terms of roads, sewerage and schooling would be affected by the project.

"We also have concerns for the environment, " she added.

Ceredigion Council Leader Independent Councillor Dai Lloyd Evans has condemned the campaign.

"The authority has a statutory duty to collect council tax. We can't avoid court action if people refuse to pay," he said.

I can't accept the proposals will damage the language Dai Lloyd Evans, Ceredigion Council Leader

He believes groups like Cant Ceredigion are attempting to usurp democracy by demanding massive changes to the Council's UDP before it has passed through the statutory process.

"They are challenging the democratic process the council is bound to follow. The UDP was published in September and we received a number of responses.

"They will be discussed later this month and there may well be a public inquiry which will prove costly, but that is democracy," he said.

He also rejected fears about the effect a new housing project may have on the Welsh Language.

"I can't accept the proposals will damage the language. The council is doing everything in its power to address the problem by adopting policies to support and strengthen the language," he claimed.

He went on, "It is not that new homes have been built, rather that old houses have been bought," referring to concerns about the rapid population increase of so-called "incomers."