18th March. We were treated to a 2-page discourse from one of the Tory candidates for Chelmsford City Council in this week's Focus. We'd like to take a little time to compare what was written with reality as sometimes there is a gap between the two when that information is designed to discredit others.

To start, let's look at his sentence, "The flag that aligns most to my personal values, and the flag that I truly believe will deliver the best local government outcome for our town of South Woodham Ferrers, is for a Conservative City Council to be returned in Chelmsford." Of course this depends what you think is the best outcome for our residents. Looking back over the past decade or two of Conservative rule in the City and Borough Councils we are not convinced there is much evidence of the Tories doing anything for SWF.

So, what does Councillor O'Brien think Tories do better? We could find not a single thing listed on either page. All we saw was criticism of the LibDems. No ideas, and a lot of misinformation.

Referring to the whips planted on City Council land alongside Creekview Road, Cllr. O'Brien claims that 95% have died. This compares with the claim by the LibDems that 65% had survived. Having monitored the site from time to time, our view is that the actual figure is somewhere between the two. The claim that this, "was against local residential wishes," is also a matter of debate. It may have been against some residents' wishes but some residents were very pleased with the planting. We would probably agree that it could have been managed better and that contractors used a glyphosate weedkiller to supress weeds between the whips on two separate occasions. Not something the LibDems should be proud of. This chemical is a bee-killer so not at all ecologically friendly!

Having sat alongside Cllr. O'Brien in numerous Town Council meetings we are a little surprised with his recent conversion to the old Woodham Against Growth position where he states, "just under 1250 new homes being dumped on our community." Last time I looked this was part of the Tory Chelmsford Local Plan! He continues by asserting that these housing plans have NO new infrastructure, and then lists some new infrastructure but misses out a lot of other things that will be provided through the new development. Where we are in agreement is the uncertainty over the sewage treatment negotiations with the water companies and the likely ineffectiveness of the junction improvements to cope with future volumes of traffic. However, we are still waiting for the Conservative Essex County Council to commit to providing a primary school on the site.

Cllr. O'Brien also criticises the cycleways and footpaths in the town. Unfortunately, any state of disrepair would be down to Conservative Essex County Council. However, we dispute the claim that they are overgrown. The City Council's Highways Rangers have done a great job keeping them tidy in recent years. A shame that his Tory colleagues in Essex County Council recently voted to remove their funding.

Cllr. O'Brien's swipe at the LibDems' undersupply of social and affordable housing (20% instead of 35%) is largely historic, stemming from developments agreed by the previous Tory administration. From our understanding the figures are increasing as newer developments are built out.

And finally, he attempts to blame the City Council for what's going on in Maldon District and the extra pressure it is creating and will create on our transport and other infrastructure. We agree there will be consequences if Maldon allows developments where its Options consultation has indicated. However, this is a matter for the Highways Authority, the Education Authority (both Tory controlled), the NHS and Maldon District Council to sort out.