Ray Turner (the independent candidate), Labour, Lib Dems and UKIP have all been active this weekend. Nothing from the Tories yet, but I see on Twitter that a fallen tree was blocking the drive to their plush HQ in Upper Northam Close. Perhaps they were all stuck in the billiard room. Or are they planning to give their coalition cronies another easy ride?
Some people have told me, "It's only a Town Council by election." But the Town Council has a budget of over £900,000 and a council tax precept of over £600,000. Voters in Wildern ward are being given the chance to have a say on who decides how to spend that money. I hope there is a reasonable turnout and whoever is elected has a real mandate from the people.
What our local councils need is a cross-section of councillors, with no "party" majority, and those councillors should be there to act for people in the whole of the council area they represent. Local councillors should not be putting first the interests of their political parties, the Borough Council, or the area immediately adjacent to where they live (rather the whole of their council area) as happens with our Lib Dem majority councillors currently.
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