CAN I thank Kevin Walsh for finally conceding that Bolton town centre does have some of the lowest vacancy rates in the region and is within the bottom half of vacancies in Greater Manchester. (Bolton New, September 3) Previous figures quoted by Mr Walsh, which claimed the opposite picture, was old data that relates to previous years.

Bolton, like any other town, has suffered during the long recession, and has seen shop closures as well as shop openings. No one is disputing this. But what is a real issue is that the repeated knocking of our town centre for political gain, directly puts at risk the jobs of thousands of people who work there. As a Lib Dem activist, Mr Walsh knows full well that his aim is to take cheap jabs at our town, whilst never giving even a nod to the amount of work and investment that we are seeing. Bolton town centre is one of the largest employment sites in the whole of the north west, containing many offices and a variety of shops, including pound shops. Mr Walsh can sneer at pound shops all he likes, but does he not understand that pound shops, like discount supermarkets, are expanding at a huge rate across the country, due to the drop in wages and spending power?

International companies like Moorgarth do not invest in town centres that they see no future in, yet here we are with this company spending millions in the Market Place, to fill the much needed gaps in the market for a cinema and a family friendly night time economy, based around a better food offer. Public sector investment in the University and Colleges and the new interchange all add to the picture. Bolton Council itself can only do so much. We have no control over business rates and absentee landlords and no say on shop rents, but we can and do try to facilitate as much investment into our town as we can by working positively with private partners. Investment means jobs and jobs mean growth, something I’m sure everyone wishes to see? We can and do make positive contributions ourselves, such as modernising Ashburner Street Market and the Albert Halls. We regularly refurb the streets and public areas in the centre, and are about to embark upon the refurbishment of both the precinct and the shop fronts at Newport Street. Not only will this cater for the changed footfall into the centre from the new Interchange, but it also demonstrates our commitment to doing what we can to attract new businesses. In addition, we use local improvement funds to invest in our local townships around Bolton in recognition of the fact that they are employment centres in their own right.

No one is saying everything in the garden is rosy, and clearly there is a way to go, but Bolton is turning a corner, we are seeing the investment we need and shop vacancies are down. It’s a simple choice for Mr Walsh and his Lib Dem colleagues, they can either back Bolton, like the 200,000 who visited our brilliant Food and Drink Festival, or they can continue to try to talk the town down. Whatever they do, we’ll still be working hard for our local economy.

Cllr Nick Peel

Tonge with the Haulgh Ward