PART of the reason for Councillor Pope’s venomous defection from Labour to independent was his belief that he had been consistently lied to by his own cabinet member regarding estate regeneration.

The Daily Echo’s small article on May 26 only helps to confirm this belief.

Councillor Payne is in a persistent denial state regarding the finance and time scale of estate regeneration.

Nothing yet has been built at Townhill Park at all, despite the project being ready to go over three years ago. Nothing will be started until mid 2016 at the earliest.

Exford Avenue has been delayed – but the last three years’ delay has all been under his watch.

Cllr Payne refused to believe for three years that there was not the money to pay for the type of estate regeneration he wanted, and he has consistently misled his own party and the public into believing that there was the money.

Some £130m was needed in Townhill Park with only £60m available.

What is the point of holding numerous meetings in Millbrook and Maybush regarding estate regeneration when nothing will happen for another five years at the earliest?

It is deliberately misleading.

His new idea of a DEVCO (Development Company) is better than before, but what he hasn’t made clear is that the Devco can only own or sell private homes – i.e. it specifically cannot own any ‘council homes’.

He is hoping the HRA will buy the homes from the Devco – but the HRA has limited funds, certainly not the hundreds of millions that citywide estate regeneration (Cllr Payne model) would cost.

Thus the city could well be left with fewer council homes together with a ‘tarting up’ estate regeration programme.

What a missed opportunity.

No wonder Cllr Pope left the shambles that Cllr Payne has created.

I would urge any Labour councillor that if you wish to realise real, citywide and comprehensive estate regeneration then you need to either replace Cllr Payne or join with Cllr Pope.

PETER BAILLIE Southampton