A £60 million project to transform the town centre has been defended by the leader of Swale council.

Cllr Andrew Bowles said he felt “obliged to put the record straight” after the proposals were branded a farce by Labour’s regeneration spokesman Roger Truelove following the scrapping of an entertainment venue.

The 9,000sq ft centre was set to be created on The Forum shopping centre car park as part of the first phase of the development.

But the Spirit of Sittingbourne Consortium behind the project said the complex network of underground services had made it “unfeasible”.

However, it says it is still committed to delivering a five-screen cinema and up to eight restaurants as part of the mixed use scheme.

Cllr Bowles said: “The core of our regeneration proposals are still unchanged and the design, the pre-planning process and all the consultations we have to do, are all proceeding at speed.

“Yes the planning applications are by the very nature of the operation quite complicated but are in place and will be ready for submission by the end of this month.

“We are hopeful these should all be determined by mid-February and then the actual construction work can begin soon after.”

More than 500 people have taken part in a series of public consultations held by the local authority’s chosen development partner, which is made up of Quinn Estates, Cathedral Group and Essential Land LLP.

Cllr Bowles added: “The reaction we have received was, by a huge majority, extremely positive.

"It is just regrettable that such an important future opportunity for the town has been met with a tiny minority of objectors who decline to believe that this operation once delivered will bring greatly increased footfall, a much improved leisure offer, significant future business and general prosperity.”