I am writing further to the letter by the Chairman of the RA councillors ('Modest' increase in tax ensures services not cut, March 13).

After reading Councillor Woodbridge’s letter, I believe what he is doing is what magicians call misdirection, look here while I blame with one hand, while the other hand picks the pocket.

I note his long and complicated explanation for turning down several £100,000s of Government money in the last three years and taxing local residents more instead. However, as he himself points out, most councils have been able to take the money and freeze council tax for three years now- so he himself has demonstrated that the RA party-run Epsom & Ewell Council is not as good at saving money as most.

He also resorts to personal attacks on me and untruths. This is the refuge of those who have bad arguments on the facts. The usual RA party lie of "...saying what his Westminster political masters have told him to" is thrown at me. He then actually proves himself it is a lie by pointing out that Conservative councils such as Surrey and others have (much to my disappointment) also increased council tax. So he himself proves Conservative councillors don’t take orders from Westminster whilst accusing me of doing so.

Let’s get a few things clear, local Conservative councillors which are in fact local residents are not the subject of any direction from any Conservative mandate, either from Surrey or from central government. It’s just a shame that the same cannot be said from the Residents Association, who frequently take their directions from their central leaders, so removing the independent voting ability of its councillors, which usually works to the detriment of residents. Again, more association than residents association.

To be totally clear, I serve the electors of Stoneleigh and the Borough of Epsom and Ewell, not the national party, who have been very clear to me that they want Epsom and Ewell to be at least as effective at saving money as most and hence want a council tax freeze.
The question is whether there is a single RA councillor who actually represents the majority of Epsom and Ewell residents who think the same? Or indeed a single RA party branch? If not, they clearly do not represent residents, so who do they work for?

Darren Dale
Leader of the Conservative Group
Stoneleigh Councillor

 



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