Monday 22 June 2009

Speech To Council 18th June 2009

Councillor Esterson has made a serious allegation in respect of my integrity, colleagues' integrity and the integrity of Overview and Scrutiny.

He has said the consultation will be 'a sham'. He has provided no evidence to support that claim, so I can only assume that it is because he has already decided.

His position is that we shouldn't consult, all schools are good schools and no school should close.

My position is that Overview and Scrutiny should do what it says.

The Cabinet has put forward a recommendation from officers that needs scrutiny and that is what I am giving it.

I have asked officers questions, which they haven't answered.

I am listening to the teachers, the parents and the pupils.

I voted to consult you, I am listening to you, and then I will make a decision as to what to recommend.

No one will be telling me what to say and I will take that decision in the best interests of my constituents.

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1 comment:

John M Ward said...

I was there last Thursday, as you know, and can vouch for what you said then as being what has been written here.

I am not going to go into the issues on this topic as they are too complex for a comments thread; but I can state that — although there was genuine anger — the shouting out was being led by known (and recognised by my "eyes and ears" there) Labour party activists.

It was the same methodology as the "rabble rousers" mingling at Trades Union rallies in decades past, so is easy to spot happening. There were also their people from outside the Medway area, including at least one from a fair distance away who had come along to boost numbers. My friend sat next to her and found this out…

It is so difficult when the agenda is being dictated from Westminster and Whitehall, collaborating with our local Labour councillors in a hate campaign that uses our people as pawns in their political game.

We saw this attitude with the Speaker election yesterday, I personally witnessed it with the Strood academy, and it is the norm for Labour.

They really have to go, both nationally and locally. Fortunately, in both cases, they have made themselves increasingly unelectable over the years, and numbers here and almost everywhere else clearly show.

The public have slowly woken up, and there's now no way back!