Labour stop me speaking!

It seems that election ‘silly season’ started on the 29^th April when County Councillor June Tandy banned me from speaking at the Abbey and Wembrook ward forum. I know the chair of the meeting has the power to chose who speaks and to keep discussion relevant but I did not expect to be savaged for just raising my hand after everyone else had spoken. If permitted I would have told the community forum about the Air Quality Monitoring Zone to be set up at Abbey Green where the area regularly breaches EU safety limits. The pollution from queuing traffic will be shortening the lives of those who live in zone. I would have told the community that the issue is going to come up at the borough council in the next few months and how they can get involved in suggesting solutions.

Three months before last years elections the labour councillors were aware of the planned hazardous waste plant at Judkins. I know, as, using the Freedom of Information act, I have obtained the emails sent to the planning officer. During last years election some in the Labour party chose to keep quiet about what was being planned at Judkins as they did not want it to be an election issue. The Tories can be just as bad and we will have to wait for details of Alan Farnell’s agreement with WRG (owners of the Judkins site) to block the hazardous waste plant. I wait to see what new bad news we get after the elections when we will be stuck with the councillors for another 4 years.