At last week's cabinet meeting, Colchester’s Lib Dem councillors voted down plans to allow an access road to be built at Philip Morant School, and thus put at risk the £130million of Government investment into Colchester’s secondary schools.

I am pleased that, following a long-held point of principle on this matter, Labour’s cabinet members, together with the Highwoods Independents, voted in favour of these proposals.

Unlike Labour and our Independent colleagues, the Lib Dems have used this issue to court popularity and put their own shortterm electoral chances ahead of improving the education of a generation of young people in Colchester.

The council will now call in this decision for wider scrutiny and the Lib Dem leader of the council will need to justify her party’s position to other councillors.

My previously stated position is that I support the £130million of Government investment into secondary education in Colchester.

This includes provision to build a new academy on the site of the Sir Charles Lucas School, a development that would not take place without this investment.

I also support the proposed road, as it is an important part of delivering this important investment in local secondary education.

I have shared local concerns that a level of misinformation and misrepresentation has occurred on the whole issue of the proposed investment into our secondary schools.

Unfortunately, Colchester Lib Dems have their own agenda and, in my opinion, are not acting in the best interests of Colchester’s children and families.

Jordan Newell
Labour’s Prospective
Parliamentary Candidate
for Colchester
Tufnell Way

...I would like to take this opportunity to raise my disgust at the Liberal Democrat borough councillors who voted to halt education reform in Colchester, at last week’s cabinet.

By blocking the building of the access road, they are putting £130million investment in Colchester schools at risk.

Their decision was politically motivated and did not consider the future of young people in Colchester.

They have clearly forgotten that they represent the people of Colchester – not just the residents who live in their target wards.

Unlike the Liberal Democratic members of the cabinet, education of children and young people in Colchester is very important to me and the other good people of Colchester.

Our children and young people’s future should not be gambled with.

Rossana Trudgian
Rowan Place
Colchester

...In a recent Gazette letter of self-promotion and congratulation with regard to her role in securing the H & M store in Colchester (Letters, December 3), councillor Julie Young made reference to the ongoing Philip Morant Road development issue, again wrongly linking it to the schools improvement plan.

She suggested the chance of this not happening reflected in some way the disregard other councillors have for the views and interests of young people in Colchester.

I think the many young people who attended the recent field protest submitted their own petition and opened a Facebook group against the road would disagree.

Indeed, I have not seen or heard of any young people in support of the road and am sure if they existed, then the pro-road politicians and press would have seized upon them and made their voice heard.

Frankly, in claiming that local residents prefer “a strip of land mainly used for dog walking” over improving the education of children, Mrs Young is speaking nonsense and her comments should be binned, along with the road plan.

Sarah Carter
Irvine Road
Colchester

...Do Colchester Lib Dems care so little about future generations they will block millions of pounds of investment in our schools?

The Lib Dems should be careful not to lose the votes of the many families that want a better education for our young people.

I hope the Liberal Democrats reconsider their position on this matter and put people before politics.

Adam Fox
Hardies Point
Colchester