THE Conservative candidate defending his seat as Winchester MP has questioned whether affordable housing should be built as part of the Silver Hill development.

Steve Brine said residents would be kept “up all night” by student noise if discount housing was built in the £165 million city centre scheme.

Mr Brine has kept a relatively low public profile over details of the controversial project since his election in 2010, arguing that it is an issue for local government, not parliament.

But he told the Chronicle: “Is it actually right that there should be affordable housing back around the car park in the middle of a city centre development, surrounded by expensive shops and bars where students wake you up all night? I’m not sure that’s the best place for affordable housing.”

Silver Hill’s co-developer, TIAA Henderson Real Estate, controversially dropped 100 cut-rate flats from its proposal last summer after it said they were financially unviable. Henderson is considering a revival of a previously-approved scheme, which included the flats, but has not explained how it would be viable.

Mr Brine also defended Winchester City Council’s “fantastic” affordable housing record, citing 880 discount homes set to be built at Barton Farm and Pitt Manor.

His main election rival, Liberal Democrat Jackie Porter, said he was “completely prejudging” the people who might rent city centre flats.

Young workers renting expensively on the outskirts of town are “desperate for the chance to go into the centre of Winchester,” she said.

“It means better access to jobs, better access to social life and often better quality of accommodation.

“Winchester has got people going through it but actually, generally, they are not very rowdy. You do hear noise because it’s people enjoying themselves but really, there are far worse places to be staying than in the centre of Winchester.”

UKIP candidate Martin Lyon questioned why so-called affordable housing is defined as up to 80 per cent of Winchester’s high house prices.

He added: “What Steve Brine’s saying is one thing in private and one thing in public – he knows that some people in his own party ... quiver at the thought of affordable housing being put into the centre of Winchester.

“They think of a certain type of people moving into those areas, which is what Steve Brine is alluding to, I think.”

The Chronicle approached Winchester’s two other parliamentary candidates for comment but did not receive any response.