TORY councillors in Castle Point are supporting national Conservative plans to scrap housing targets, just six months after voting to allow 5,000 homes to be built in the borough.

Opposition councillors accused the Tories of electioneering, but Tories said they had made the decision they thought would best protect the green belt.

Bringing the motion at a heated full council meeting – the last before the general election expected on May 6 – Bill Dick told the chamber it had been tough for him and his Tory colleagues to vote for the core strategy, which set out plans to build the homes, last September.

The document outlines where in the borough the 5,000 homes should be built by 2026 to meet Government targets.

This includes 400 homes for green belt land near to Canvey’s Dutch Village.

Mr Dick (Cons, St Peter’s) said: “We did it with a very, very heavy heart. I don’t think there is a person here who voted for it who did so with joy.”

He called on the council to support his motion that the council welcomes and supports Conservative party policy of scrapping housing targets and removing the power of the planning inspectorate to interfere with local plans.

Dave Blackwell, leader of the Canvey Island Independent Party, questioned why Tory councillors had not voted against the homes when they had the chance.

Mr Blackwell (Canvey, Central) added: “This motion is just electioneering. It’s here for the council elections that’s all it is.”

During the meeting, Conservative councillors bought a second motion, praising their party’s proposed national policies and a third criticising the Government.

Brian Wood (an Independent, Canvey South) said: “I think it is disgusting to do this at this time in an election year.”

But Beverley Egan (Cons, St Peters) denied it was electioneering and reminded councillors only about 100 new homes had actually been built in the borough during the past year.

She said: “We had to take our decision based on what we knew at the time and we know for a fact there were a number of large developers waiting.”

The core strategy must still go before a Government inspector for final approval.

But if the council had not produced the document then developers, such as Barratt Homes which want to build hundreds of homes on land north of Daws Heath Road, Thundersley, would have been able to argue it should have been allowed to build as the council had not shown how it would meet the Government’s target.

Mrs Egan added: “It was a difficult decision to make.”