Wilfred Emmanuel-Jones | I'm on your side

I think I may have surprised some Saturday shoppers on Chippenham High St by riding through the town centre on a shire horse! Frankie the shire horse is owned by Phil Newberry and has previously been used for children’s horse rides to raise funds for local charities.

The ride was entirely impromptu, I was offered the chance by Phil and took it on the spot.

I was out of the streets of Chippenham answering locals’ questions about the proposed development at Bird’s Marsh ahead of the Council meeting in Trowbridge this Tuesday. I have called for cross party co-operation to ensure Bird’s Marsh is preserved. The most important thing is that Chippenham gets the houses it needs in the places they are needed without damaging the fabric of the town. Chippenham needs consulting before areas such as Bird’s Marsh are damaged forever.

Local residents have been misled by certain individuals who have resorted to underhand and dishonest campaigning. I have therefore appealed to all local parties to work together to ensure that we get the right long term development plan for Chippenham.

Local Councillor, Peter Hutton, who also answered residents’ concerns on Chippenham High St at the weekend said “I have been working hard within the council to ensure that Birds’ Marsh is protected. So I was very concerned and annoyed that some individuals were claiming that the Council had plans to do otherwise”.

A Conservative government would abolish the Regional Spatial Strategy which is dictating the current discussions about house numbers and hand planning powers back from Westminster to Wiltshire.