TORIES GAG OPPOSITION IN REVENGE CAMPAIGN

11.32.00am BST (GMT +0100) Sat 15th Aug 2009

In a blatant act of revenge, the Conservative administration group at Essex County Council has voted to cut off the only opposition group's sole full time support staff in a bid to gag the opposition. The taxpayer will continue to fund 13 full-time staff to support the leading Conservative councillors, who will also continue to accept Special Responsibility Allowances totaling around £600,000 on top of their normal councillor allowances - all at the taxpayers' expense. The move came when the administration decided to make political staff to the Liberal Democrat and Conservative group redundant.

Speaking about the decision, Lib Dem group leader Cllr Tom Smith-Hughes said: "Only recently, Lord Hanningfield was complaining to the national press that a "vindictive campaign" had been launched against him by a Liberal Democrat MP. This was in response to the news that Scotland Yard had decided to investigate Lord Hanningfield's House of Lords expenses. It can hardly be a coincidence that a short time later the Lib Dem group has been thrown off the council's Waste Advisory Board and is now having its only full time staff member made redundant.

"Given the already outrageous number of full time employees dedicated to working for the leading Conservative councillors, it is clear that their main preoccupation is with occupying power and then cutting down the opportunities for anyone to question them. It appears there are shades of North Korea in Essex Conservatives' style of governance, rather than the bright new Conservative image peddled by David Cameron."

In a letter to the press, Lib Dem Councillor Alan Dean wrote:

Sir

There are signs of an emerging political tyranny at Essex County Hall in Chelmsford that should disturb everyone who cares about the future of local democracy.

Essex Conservatives are not content with winning 80% of the seats on the county council in June with only 43% of the votes cast. They have now set about crippling the only opposition group on the county council, the Liberal Democrats. First they removed Lib Dem representation from a management board that oversees a multi-billion pound waste project for the county. What have they to hide? It seems they can't stomach criticism and challenge to their plans.

Now they intend to abolish the opposition group's political assistant, an officer who researches information for councillors to enable them to do their job effectively on behalf of Essex taxpayers. The Lib Dems will be left with a part-time secretary, whereas Conservative councillors under the leadership of Lord Hanningfield will have over a dozen people working directly for them.

The most recent information available shows that Conservative councillors on Essex collected £590,000 of local taxpayers' money for their personal allowances. The Liberal Democrat councillors were granted less than £20,000.

But this is not about money. It is about democracy versus autocracy. It is about transparency versus secrecy. It is about the ability of local people to know that a large political majority, which our distorted electoral system has produced, can be held effectively to account by a sensibly resourced opposition.

Yet it seems to be about a Conservative Party that treats democracy with contempt; that seeks revenge for past challenges and that cannot be trusted to wield power with integrity. The public has had enough of the scandals of Westminster politicians. It now seems that Essex county Tory councillors are not immune from scandalous behaviour.

Yours truly

Cllr Alan Dean

Related Link:

Coverage in the Herts & Essex Observer