The latest in a long line of politicians has seen for himself the traffic nightmare of Kingskerswell and the need for a £130m bypass.Andrew Mitchell MP, the Shadow Secretary of State for International Development, was on a Westcountry tour of target seats and dropped into Paignton to see for himself the impact a £2m library will have on the town.
He was invited by Marcus Wood, the Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for Torbay, who drove him into town.
Mr Wood said: "Every single MP who has come here to see the problems of the Bay has been brought along the Kingskerswell bypass to see for themselves the havoc it causes.
"I want to make sure they know our problems and the need for a new road.
"These are the people who will form the next Government and when they are in power they will be aware of our needs."
Mr Mitchell said he could not give any assurance of what might happen if the Conservative win the next election but predicted the Bay would have a worthy champion on transport issues if Mr Wood takes the Bay from Lib-Dem MP Adrian Sanders but said: "Congestion is a big issue for business and visitors in any area."
However he predicted a new Conservative Government would do things differently from the Labour Government.
"This Government has been inefficient and ineffective on transport issues. It makes announcement after announcement but nothing happens."
Mr Mitchell was in town to hear more of Torbay Council's vision for a new library in Paignton.
He was accompanied by Nick Bye, mayor of Torbay, and Mr Wood, when he visited the old library in Courtland Road, Paignton, which will be replaced with a new one in Station Lane.
The dream of a new library received a boost in getting £2m from the Big Lottery Fund's Community Libraries programme.
Mr Bye said: "Mr Mitchell appears to have a grasp of the issues of affecting Torbay and coastal tourist towns, and what regeneration of a library can mean for an area."
