Arts officials behind a new gallery for Colchester have been criticised for refusing to state how much of their £2.5 million fundraising target has been achieved.

Firstsite, which runs the contemporary art gallery based at the Minories, had pledged to raise £2.5million towards the total cost of £16.5 million for the visual arts facility - its new home under construction off Queen Street in Colchester.

It is raising the cash on behalf of itself and Essex University - which will house its collection of Latin American art at the Visual Arts Facility (Vaf)..

Colchester MP Bob Russell has tried to find out how the fundraising is going and what the current total is. He wrote to both the council and Firstsite in a bid to get the figure.

Kath Wood, director of Firstsite, said: "Fundraising for the new Firstsite building - it is not a Vaf - is on target. We have received donations from local, national and international donors and donor bodies.

"As is the norm with all fundraising campaigns, there is a set protocol that respects donor confidentiality. This means we cannot disclose details of donations at this time."