Opinion: Democracy has not been best served

As I predicted in last week’s column, democracy was not best served last Wednesday night as a group of former Conservative councillors made a grab for power and ousted me as Leader of the Council and all of the Conservatives from their roles in the administration. They were of course backed by the Labour Party, Liberal Democrats and the Greens, without whom this takeover would not have been possible.

The individuals that did this betrayed the trust of you the electorate, as they were all voted in as Conservatives, some as recent as this May and subsequently “crossed the floor” to become so called independents. In our view, they have no public legitimacy to lead the council and should have all resigned and faced the public vote again in by-elections – let me know if you agree.

So that you the electorate, many who voted Conservative, will remember this treachery at the next election I shall name and shame them all here today.

Cllr Peter Hiller and Cllr Saqib Farooq (up for re-election in 2024) both of Glinton and Castor Ward and Cllr Gavin Elsey Wittering Ward (up for re-election in 2024). Cllr John Howard and Cllr. Mohammed Farooq both of Hargate and Hempsted Ward who are now the new Leader and Deputy Leader. And finally, Cllr. Ray Bisby and Cllr. Brian Rush along with Cllr. Chris Harper (up for re-election in 2024) all in the Stanground South Ward. Let’s hope none of these Ballot Box Dodgers are returned to the Town Hall when their time is up.

Looking ahead, no matter where you live in the city, we like others, are always on the lookout for passionate individuals who share the same Conservative values as I and my colleagues do. If you want to give something back to your community, then you should consider becoming a city councillor, just get in touch if you fancy having a go.

It is also worth noting that in the council meeting last week the Labour Party and others failed to back a Conservative motion to remove the illegal migrants from the Great Northern Hotel. Fortunately, due to the hard work of Paul Bristow MP, it now looks likely that the government will look to move these people to alternative accommodation in the next few weeks. It was also disappointing to see that they also refused to back the Prime Ministers “Stop the Boats” initiative preferring it seems to have all and sundry continue to come in and arrive on our shores illegally.

This weekend “We Will Remember Them” as once again we gather to mark Armistice on Saturday and then on the next day people will come together once more for Remembrance Sunday. Personally, I shall be attending the Armistice service on the Saturday as usual in the city centre and I will certainly mark the occasion on the Sunday, but I’ll be in Birmingham as I’m away for the day. Steve Allen and other colleagues as usual, will be present on the Sunday in the city centre to represent the Conservative Group. It is often disappointing to see that many members from the other political parties do not attend in any great numbers at these occasions. I guess they just don’t care or share the same traditional British values as we do.

The Armistice two-minute silence service starts at 10.40am on Saturday . The Remembrance Sunday service at the War Memorial starts at 10.45am. All are invited to join the procession at the War Memorial or can watch the event on a large screen in Cathedral Square. While the silence and wreath laying service will also be streamed on the Peterborough City Council’s YouTube channel.

Ho, Ho, Ho - It will also soon be time to don the Santa hats and get the tinsel and your best baubles out, as the big Christmas light switch on is fast approaching. Get the date in the dairy which is starting at 5pm on November 24th. Once again, the PCR – 103.2FM on air team including presenters Keith and Claire along with Kev Lawrence, will be live on stage in Cathedral Square. They’ve a great line up of entertainment for the evening including singing princesses, dancing mascots plus Santa of course, and pantomime stars including Cheryl Ferguson who played Heather in Eastenders and is now starring as “Good Witch Glynda” in this year’s Cresset Panto the Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The big switch on will be at 7pm followed by music from Citizen Smith, a popular local band. We must thank local sponsors too - including Princebuild, Jolley’s the Pet People, the Metro Bank in the city centre and O & H Peterborough.

In closing this week, there are certainly interesting times ahead over the coming months in Peterborough City Council and I and my Conservative colleagues will be keeping a close eye on what is going on with the usurpers in the Town Hall as they try to muddle through to May 24. Sadly though, I fear for the city’s future, and it will be you the residents and the businesses that will suffer from their incompetence when it all falls apart.