BFBC Committee Membership‏

7.53.47pm GMT Mon 9th Feb 2009

The Leader of the depleted Labour Group on Bracknell Forest Borough Council was absolutely right to challenge the morality of allowing council members, who are married to each other, to in effect be their own judge and jury when dealing with matters of common interest within their own related areas of responsibility.

In the case of Cllrs Dale Birch and Gill Birch it is particularly unacceptable that the latter should be chairman of the panel which scrutinises the Cabinet decisions of the former. The scrutiny process, which was designed to hold the executive to account, has never worked well in Bracknell Forest because nearly all the members of the scrutiny panels have been members of the same ruling group. Without effective arrangements the whole process becomes virtually meaningless and incestuous arrangements of this kind only serve to show how little regard the Conservatives really have for the scrutiny process.

The old adage, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, springs to mind but unfortunately electors will not be able to do anything about it until the next local elections in 2011.

Ray Earwicker

Lib Dem Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Bracknell