MODEST plans to redevelop Glasgow's George Square have been approved, as the city's council leader moved to fend off further criticism of his role in the debacle surrounding the collapse of the £15 million redesign competition.

Gordon Matheson said he disagreed with the tone of publicised criticism of his role in the competition from the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), which claimed he was at the heart of a debacle that brought the city into significant disrepute, cost taxpayers £100,000 and architectural practices a further £200,000.

Questioned by political rivals over the claims, he again said he was reacting to the public consensus that the six designs short-listed were too radical. He also quoted competition winner John McAslan, who, he claimed, said the process had been "impeccably handled".

However, others involved said their experience of the process was similar to that revealed in the report by RIAS, whose chairman Neil Baxter was an adviser on the project.

The council agreed yesterday that the makeover of the civic space should occur in two stages, before and after the Commonwealth Games in 2014. The red tarmac will be removed and replaced by "a grey, surface treatment". The first phase, to be completed by September, will also involve cleaning the statues, installing new lighting and introducing two grass beds.