I am grateful to Sir Bob Russell for his letter (Gazette, March 30) for again reminding residents that I helped secure £19.2m to regenerate our wonderful town.

My General Election literature that Sir Bob has cited was very clear “I have recently secured up to £25 million to regenerate Colchester town centre and am pushing for further investment” – the key part which was clear in all my literature “up to £25m”.

The evidence is there for residents to see in that Colchester is set to receive £19.2 million to regenerate our town. Of course, I would have loved to have received the full £25 million but refuse in any way to criticise the borough council, county council and Town Deal board members who worked hard to put together a strong bid for the Government cash.

It’s important to stress that this £19.2 million is the most significant Government investment into Colchester for decades, the reality is it is this Conservative Government significantly investing in our town.

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£19.2 million of Government funding to regenerate our town should be universally welcomed. Positivity and talking up our town is what I am all about and since my election as Colchester’s MP in 2015, Colchester has received significant investment to regenerate our town, our transport network and our hospital.

I can understand why this frustrates Sir Bob in comparison to his time as Colchester’s MP but it is a record of which I am proud.

With more Government funding opportunities on the horizon, now is a time for positivity and to talk up our town and it’s future.

That is exactly what I will be doing, working collaboratively, continuing to play my part by making sure as much funding as possible comes to Colchester so our town has an even brighter future. Give positivity a try, Sir Bob!

Will Quince

Member of Parliament for Colchester