It is a very, very complex issue

Lambeth Council spokesman

The plans involve the redevelopment of the Royal Festival Hall, the establishment of public squares, a park and a Queen's Walk and the redevelopment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery.

Ms Even told the committee: "Our plans are ambitious and fundamentally feasible. "It will be a world-class centre - a single cultural campus.

"But Lambeth Council is delaying its considering of our planning application for the Festival Hall."

'Ashamed'

She said the South Bank Centre was in desperate need of redevelopment and plans costing more than �200m were in place, adding she was "ashamed of the site" at present.

"Artists' facilities are absolutely embarrassing," she said. "It is confusing to navigate for visitors and it is dangerous at night.

The key for the successful development is evolution

Maya Even, South Bank Centre

"We have the money in place, the architect's plans in place, the schedule in place but Lambeth Council have sat on our proposals for two years.

"All that Lambeth Council do for Festival Hall, a relatively simple proposal, is give us delay after delay."

She added that they wanted to keep as much of the development open as possible while it was being developed.

Minefield

Mike McCourt, director of the South Bank Centre, said the management had learnt from previous proposals that had failed.

How the South Bank could look

Plans designed by architects Cedric Price, Terry Farrell and Richard Rogers have all failed due to reasons including lack of public money, the collapse of the property market and the minefield of lottery applications, said Mr McCourt.

"We have made sure we get arts and urban needs right before we talked about architecture," he said.

The Festival Hall will cost �54m to develop and almost �30m of the funding is already in place.

The development of a new park of the site and the Queen's Walk will cost �11m while the redevelopment of the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery will cost �147m.

'Complex issue'

Mr McCourt said: "The whole site could be complete by 2008/9 but people could see improvements to the Festival Hall site within nine months."

The South Bank is considered by many to be an eye-sore

A spokeswoman for Lambeth Council said the authority was "not being bloody-minded" by delaying a decision on planning application.

"It is a very, very complex issue. There have been a lot of revisions and considerations to each application which have created huge controversy amongst residents of the area.

"At the end of February or the beginning of March there will be a special meeting of the planning committee in Waterloo.

"The public will be invited to attend and we will be making a decision on that day."