‘All they want to do is draw us out, but we don’t play their games and that annoys them’
CRAWLEY’S Labour leader has defended her Party against claims of political point-scoring after members were accused of withdrawing from the budget scrutiny process.
Crawley Labour leader Brenda Smith said it was “absolute rubbish” to claim that her members had not contributed to the Overview and Scrutiny Commission, which was held last week, ahead of the full council meeting on February 29.
The robust defence came following a Cabinet meeting on Wednesday (February 8) where Conservative councillors bemoaned the “disappointing” lack of input from the opposition.
The Overview and Scrutiny Commission is a cross-Party group of non-Cabinet member councillors which scrutinises council plans.
At Wednesday’s meeting, Cllr Claire Denman, Cabinet member for planning and economic development, said: “At the moment there’s something so sad about our local authority.
“The whole point about Overview and Scrutiny is to serve the people of Crawley.
“The opposition group could have come up with some cracking ideas to include within the budget. But we’re being denied that contribution, they are withdrawing their skill-sets.
“I’m incredibly disappointed. To come up with ideas on the day of the full council in my view is wrong.”
Cabinet vice-chairman Cllr Duncan Crow added: “Some Labour members don’t seem to understand what Overview and Scrutiny is all about. If they only want to speak at the full council then it’s all about political point-scoring.”
Overview and Scrutiny chair Cllr Howard Bloom said: “The Labour members did not put forward suggestions and reserved their right to do so at full council.”
Speaking after the meeting Cllr Smith insisted Labour’s three Commission members had contributed, and that it was normal for the opposition to hold back their full argument ahead of full council meetings.
She said: “What absolute rubbish. It’s standard procedure and has been the same ever since we’ve been in opposition.
“Our attendance at Overview and Scrutiny is very good and we took a full part in the debate. In fact there was a very poor attendance from Conservative councillors.
“Why rehearse your political stance? Had we gone to Cabinet we wouldn’t have been allowed to take part in the debate. There’s nothing different from what you see up and down the country.
“All they want to do is draw us out, but we don’t play their games and that annoys them.
“We do very well as an opposition and I’m proud to say that. The Conservatives would prefer us to do and say nothing.”
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Sunday 27 May 2012
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