THE leader of the opposition party on Colchester Council has described the inspector’s letter as a “vindication” of concerns raised by campaigners.

Tory boss Darius Laws said: “On the surface this letter is vindication of the concerns raised by the Colchester Conservatives on the local plan committee, who have consistently challenged the economic case for West Tey.

“If the combined authority plans for our long term housing needs are to include garden communities, then clearly substantial further work is required, specifically around areas such employment land allocation and transport infrastructure.

"All of us need an honest discussion with all our residents, and within all our communities, about how we manage home and community building for future generations.”

Rosie Pearson, of Campaign Against Urban Sprawl in Essex, said: “The inspectors letter has covered much of the points we have already raised and we are grateful for that.

“As we previously said, the plans for infrastructure are unviable and completely flawed.

“The employment strategy just is not there.

“This shows that the plan couldn’t be more dead.”