FLATS rising up over an infants school playground could become a "paedophile's paradise", said MP Iain Duncan Smith.

The Woodford Green MP is appalled by the Queen Mary's Gate development of 498 homes next to Churchfields Infants School and said the safety of children is at risk both now and in the future.

He said: "When it is finished it will be like a cliff face running all the way around the school, and it will be completely overlooked by flats with a clear view of the children.

"It raises questions about who is going to be living in these flats, and for all we know it is people with a motive for living near a school."

Thick diesel fumes filled the air and cranes swayed overhead as he spoke to concerned parents at the South Woodford school on Friday.

He said: "There were huge cranes overhanging the playground and the crane arm swung right across, I watched it go over the top of my head. I just could not believe it. I am absolutely appalled.

"The building itself is so close, stuff falls into the playground - we found a nasty piece of wood with nails in it, and we could hardly breathe for the diesel fumes choking the air."

Mother-of-three Emma Thetford said: "These things are especially damaging to young children, and my five-year-old son Matthew suffers from asthma which has already been exacerbated by the construction. These fumes can only make it worse."

The five and seven-storey buildings are inches away from the school fence, blocking light from the classrooms, and building work is filling the school grounds with noise and dust.

The MP is calling on the Health and Safety Executive to step in, and asking Redbridge Council's leader and head of planning why the development has been approved, "without any thought to the fact that they are next to a school."

Redbridge Council is satisfied the development is being built according to plan and a spokeswoman for Telford Homes told the Guardian: "The tower cranes on the site do not oversail the school property. We are not aware of any issues with regard to debris. We received a call regarding diesel smells, have checked site operations and can find no specific problem.

"The local environmental health officer will check operations immediately, in relation to this complaint."

l A petition signed by 500 parents against the development will be presented to full council tonight. To pledge your support email QMGactiongroup@hotmail.co.uk.