Oxfordshire Tories Ignore National Conservative Leader

2.52.50pm GMT Tue 9th Jan 2007

Oxfordshire County Conservatives have ignored the advice of Lord Bruce Lockhart, the Conservative Chairman of the Local Government Association - the voice of local authorities nationally. Lord Bruce had advised all his Conservative colleagues in Councils up and down the country to allow members of the opposition parties on their councils to chair Scrutiny Committees. However, when Cllr Roz Smith, Deputy Leader of the County Liberal Democrats, today suggested that the Council's constitution should be changed to allow this, the Tories voted en masse against her motion.

Roz said, "The role of Scrutiny Committees is to scrutinise Cabinet decisions and offer them advice on Council services. It seems only fair and democratic that some of these Committees should be chaired by opposition councillors. The Tories nationally pretend that they have changed their spots, but locally it is clear that they are the same old dinosaurs - not interested in democracy or hearing different views."

Cllr Jim Moley, speaking in the debate, pointed out that there was an example currently present in the Council Chamber of an opposition councillor who chaired a Scrutiny Committee. Conservative County Councillor Melinda Tilley is also Leader of the Opposition on the Liberal Democrat Vale of White Horse District Council, and in that capacity she is the Chairman of the Vale's Scrutiny Committee. Cllr Tilley joined the rest of her Conservative colleagues in voting against the motion. Jim said, "I can only assume that she will be resigning her chairmanship of the Vale's Committee forthwith."