As far as I’ve been able to find our, Cllr Robin Smith (Conservative) is the same as Robin Smith, Independent Parliamentary candidate in Wokingham, where the Conservative candidate is one John Redwood. Curious.
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Presumably failed to get selected as the Tory candidate. Somebody tell that guy why STV would fix this.
Speaking as the Lib Dem candidate in Wokingham…..
You are right – Robin Smith is a Tory councillor. Or should that now be “was”? But believe it or not, he is the THIRD Conservative to be standing!
Mr Redwood is being challenged by no less than 2 other members of the Conservative party now standing as Independents. Robin Smith is one, and the other is Mark Ashwell – who has been spending rather a lot of money in the last few weeks having blue banners produced, lots of blue posters and large (mainly blue) adverts in the local press.
Who knows what is going to happen in the election!
He wants to cut tax…
http://www.readingchronicle.co.uk/news/reading/articles/2010/04/23/46106-former-tory-to-stand-as-independent/
This is Robin’s blog.
http://gco2e.blogspot.com/
Robin is a strong supporter of Land Tax and fiscal reform, and he applied to be a candidate for the Bracknell constituency in the aftermath of Andrew MacKay’s involvement in the expenses scandal.
In addition to his policy disagreements he was unimpressed by the way the selection process was handled, in particular the central control exerted during the Conservative ‘open primary’.
The affair also exposes the level of dissent and discontent within the local Conservative organisation regarding Mr Redwood’s ideological platform.
Together a picture emerges where the Conservative leadership and the national party is disconnected from even their local councillors, and is instead controlled by the vested interests it supports rather than being accountable to their active membership.
How much longer can the rift between the moderates and the more dogmatic right-wingers be prevented from spreading to cause a deeper and more permanent schism?
(I should add that I’ve heard numerous of reports of similar rumbling splits in the neighbouring Maidenhead, Reading and Windsor tory parties where frontbenchers Theresa May and Rob Wilson, and Policy Exchange director Adam Afriyie are incumbents – there’s a definite cross-Berkshire trend.)
Correct. I was a member of the Tory party till Wednesday morning. In fact members of the party have been extremely gracious to me. You can find my views here.
http://sites.google.com/site/robinsmithelection2010/
Thanks.
Thanks Robin. I’ll include that in an update later today.