Slough town centre is improving, Conservative councillors have insisted – after one of their own councillors said the state of the high street makes him cringe.

Councillor Dhruv Tomar, who represents Slough Central on Slough Borough Council, said the ‘whole town needs an uplift’ at a debate last week.

He said: “As a ward councillor for Slough Central, the high street comes under my ward and every time I walk down there it makes me cringe.” He went on to accuse the council of ‘not selling Slough very well.’

Conservative councillor Tomar said: “You can get to Bond Street in thirty minutes. I don’t even think you can do that from Hounslow which is in London.

READ MORE: ‘Significant progress’ made on Queensmere Observatory plans

“We’ve got Windsor on the doorstep, we’ve got Legloand on the doorstep but look at the high street.”

His remarks came as councillors debated calls by the Labour Party and independents to take action to boost the town centre at a meeting on Thursday July 25.

Proposals included a three-monthly deep clean of the high street, finding temporary uses for empty shops, and taking action against landowners for failing to secure vacant land against crime and anti-social behaviour.

Labour councillor Christine Hulme said Slough’s residents were ‘suffering’ from a poor high street and not being kept informed of plans to improve it.

She said: “Residents are suffering the effects of having a high street that’s not well maintained and where security is lacking.

“It’s a very high crime rate in the area. We have an issue of economic decline. We also have an issue of the appearance the high street has on the reputation of the town.”

Councillor Hulme also asked for an update on plans to redevelop the Queensmere and Observatory shopping centres.

She said the Slough Observer ‘seems to be the only body at the moment that’s able to give us any update on what’s happening in our town centre.’ It came after the Observer revealed that the council was close to signing an agreement with its owner that will allow development to take place.

But Conservative council leaders said previous Labour-run administrations had overseen the town centre’s decline.

Councilor Wal Chahal said: “Ten years of inactivity have brought the high street to its knees – full of pound shops, empty shops, betting shops and a hub for anti-social behaviour. That’s on their watch – they caused that, they made it happen.”

He added that ‘good progress’ had been made on improving the town centre. He said a programme of deep cleaning had begun, and that the council had introduced ‘hit squads’ to target areas needing extra street sweeping.

And he said shops such as JD sports and Footlocker had stayed in Slough town centre after relocating from the high street and Observatory shopping centres.

The proposals by Labour and independent councillors were not agreed, with 16 votes in favour of them, twenty against and one abstention.