Labour councillors are calling for a special task force to be set up to bring life back to Ipswich town centre.

There are over a hundred empty shops in Ipswich. Some, such as Woolworths and Zavvi closed when a national chain went bust, but others such as Currys and Robert Dyas have only closed in Ipswich. The latest blow to the town centre is the imminent closure of the Vergo department store.

The town’s Labour councillors are concerned at the lack of action and urgency from the Conservative and Liberal Democrat-run council at turning the town centre round:

• Local businesses were told at a recent “Town Centre Forum” meeting that Ipswich lacked vision, leadership and that “there was lots of talk and no action”.

• Work on a new vision for the town centre is still not complete more than a year after work started.

• The Labour Government gave Ipswich a £52,000 grant in August 2009 to bring empty shops back into use. After 10 months only £5,000 of this had been used.

• Posts have been unfilled in the Council’s Economic Development Unit throughout the recession. At the height of the recession there was only one person working at bringing new business to Ipswich.

• Local shops were dealt a hammer blow when Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors voted to allow a massive new Tesco on the edge of the town centre.

Labour councillors believe that the problems facing the town centre are so large that the political parties on the council should set aside traditional hostilities and work together for the good of Ipswich. A new task force, using the best talents of all the political parties, working closely with existing town centre organisations, would bring a much-needed impetus to the job of rejuvenating Ipswich’s town centre.

Labour’s Economic Development Spokesperson Carole Jones said: “The overwhelming impression from the council is one of drift and neglect. People are now talking of Bury St Edmunds as being a better shopping centre. That would have been unthinkable a few years ago. The council needs to seriously raise its game.”