RECENTLY I criticised Cllr Stephen Rock, Lib Dem, Horwich Town Council, for proposing at its planning committee meeting that both Leverhulme Park and Queens Park would be suitable sites for housing.

Cllr Rock has now been supported by Cllr Steven Chadwick and an anonymous letter writer who say the comments were made in jest.

At these planning committee meetings, town councillors should make recommendations and confine their comments to valid policy and planning reasons as to why an application should be approved or refused.

Like it or not, Cllr Rock in his comments decided to recommend building on two of the borough’s parks as a valid planning reason.

I certainly do not find it funny for Cllr Rock to joke about such a serious subject.

At the same planning committee meeting, Cllr Rock and the two other Lib Dem town councillors all voted to recommend refusal of an application to build 158 homes on a brown field site.

Cllr Chadwick also voted against this application to build on brown field land.

The anonymous writer suggested a meeting of Bolton Council occurred last April where Labour voted against a Lib Dem proposal not to build on green belt land.

To correct, no meeting of Bolton Council took place last April and it is Bolton Labour policy for no building on the green belt.

What I do remember last April is that every Bolton Labour councillor campaigned for Andy Burnham’s pledge to halt the GM Spacial Framework and start again — a pledge which he is upholding.

I am accused of not supporting infrastructure investment in Horwich.

Quite the reverse!

I met with the NHS and doctors before Christmas and have seen and support the plans for the new health centre with capacity and room to expand for an increasing population; I support the one million investment into the Brazley Adult Day Care Centre in my Ward; I support the new Horwich Leisure Centre; I support the building of the new Chorley New Road School; I support the increasing investment in Horwich town centre; I support the half a million road infrastructure investment in my ward spent in Chorley Old Road last year and I have worked closely with my residents to get Ridgmont Close pavements resurfaced last week and I support the £12 million funding obtained by Bolton Council for the road infrastructure of the Rivington Chase development.

The facts on record are that I objected to the original proposals to build on a part of Green Lane Playing fields, managed to get Cedar Avenue playing field protected forever with Village Green status, objected to Horwich College football field being developed and I support developing brown field sites.

In contrast, there are no letters on record from Cllr Rock or any other Lib Dem councillor objecting to building on a part of Green Lane Playing fields, none objecting to the development of Horwich College football field, none in support of Village Green status for Cedar Avenue playing field and the Horwich Lib Dems have now voted to oppose building on brown field land.

My record of standing up for Horwich, protecting our Green Space and building instead on brown field land is consistent, but that cannot be said of the Lib Dems. Perhaps it is they who are a joke?

Cllr Richard Silvester,

Horwich North East Ward