Tory Splits on Grove Housing

12.00.00am GMT Mon 20th Feb 2006

Letter to Wantage & Grove Herald

May I congratulate our Tory MP for his large advert of pledges in your last edition. One in particular which struck me was his declaration: 'I am opposing extra houses in Grove'.

Does this mean he condemns the Tory County Council Cabinet's recent rushed decision to dump 1400 houses on Grove post 2016 with no adequate planning?

If so, he is at odds with Tory County Councillors who on 10 January endorsed this decision - apart from the two Vale Tory councillors who were regrettably forced to leave the room for entirely unrelated reasons at the moment a recorded vote was taken

There is much to be welcomed in our MP's democratic disagreement with his Tory Group as far as Grove/Wantage residents go. If he earnestly takes this view,he finds himself in agreement with the County wide consultations, County officers, the Vale of White Horse District Council and even the County Council at an earlier meeting when it met to consider the public consultation which resoundingly rejected Grove as a future site for unplanned housing

I wonder if the leader of the County Council could clarify precisely where Oxfordshire Tories stand on this vexed issue. Residents of Grove will be interested.

Jim Moley