As many of you know, I have long believed Farnham, with its Georgian architecture, castle and views, could be one of the most beautiful towns in the south east – if only we found a way to deal with the traffic.

While towns like Guildford, Godalming and Petersfield have found a way to divert traffic away from the busiest shopping streets, Farnham residents end up being squeezed like sardines when walking down The Borough and are as likely to see an HGV as the beautiful castle from the bottom of Castle Street.

Added to which is the pollution where NO2 (‘nox’) levels breach the legal limit in not one but three places around the town – The Borough, Station Hill and Wrecclesham Hill.

In my survey last September, pollution was the biggest reason people supported the pedestrianisation of the town centre.

So it is not a surprise that according to the same survey, two-thirds of Farnham residents feel ‘very strongly’ that something needs to happen. I have always known this, which is why I tried to galvanise action with the referendum I organised in 2014. For a long time we struggled to get concrete action from our local authorities, but things started to change.

At the emergency pollution summit I organised in October, hosted by the Herald, the leader of Surrey County Council Tim Oliver and the deputy leader of Waverley Paul Follows committed to publishing a costed plan to deal with the traffic in the centre of Farnham by the end of January, and a further plan to address pollution throughout the town by the end of April.

I persuaded Surrey and Waverley – under the previous Conservative leadership – to commit £80,000 towards such a study, which was commissioned last spring.

What we don’t want from such a plan is a woolly ‘vision statement’ or summary of previous studies. Instead we need a proper plan including traffic modelling and costing. We can then focus on how to raise the money to fund it.

No-one underestimates the challenges involved, but for the first time we have a consensus about the way forward with both the town council, under John Neale’s leadership, and the Farnham Society very supportive.

It is vital we see a masterplan for the whole town that includes a Wrecclesham relief road and Hickley’s Corner – but it is also essential the need to address pollution levels in the centre of the town is not deprioritised.

I promised a public meeting to update the town on progress and will organise that as soon as Waverley publish the plan they have been working on.

I know Paul Follows stood against me as the Liberal Democrat candidate in the election but now that is settled we must work together to deliver this for Farnham. Having seen the way Farnham’s three county councillors have put aside party differences to work on this plan, I am confident this can happen.

Sorting out traffic issues as complex as those in Farnham will not be easy, which is why it is essential politicians from all parties come together. Farnham first!