COUNCIL leader Mark Cory has given a “cast iron” promise over the state of parts of Colchester town centre.

The senior Lib Dem was quizzed on the issue at a full council meeting on Wednesday night by Conservative boss Darius Laws, who compared Colchester’s streets to Chelmsford’s – where he claimed he could have eaten a pizza off the ground.

Mr Cory said: “You can have a cast iron guarantee from me on this.

“Our teams are out there using a replacement machine as our jet washer did break down. I do accept there has been a problem, especially in the hot weather and the lack of rain.”

Mr Cory pointed to £300,000 – out of a total of £700,000 – having been set aside specifically for town centre improvements.

He added: “That £300,000 will go directly to making the town centre even better than it is now.”

The leader also vowed to get tougher on litter louts, especially those who drop cigarette butts.

He added: “We have seen our streets become quite messy over the last few weeks but where does that mess come from?

“It’s from people in our town centre and people who visit our town.

“So I am going to be quite hard in terms of enforcement.

“This is our town centre, this is our borough and we need to look after it and I am absolutely clear; it is not OK to drop litter or cigarette butts.

“It makes our borough a lesser place. We will invest in making this town centre better but people need to take the same pride in the town centre as we all do.”