Sean Davey

Vested interests on Cameron’s doorstep

By | Wed 18th January 2012 - 8:55 am

Private Eye has welcomed a newcomer to its Rotten Boroughs column in its past 26 issues: Cotswold District Council.

Here in the idyllic Cotswold constituency, neighbouring  David Cameron’s Witney, there has been massive fraud, resulting, so far, in the prosecution and  sentencing of former Cotswold Water Park Society CEO Dennis Grant, who embezzled £700,000 of the charity’s funds. Now an independent, external police force has been brought in by the County Council to investigate further allegations.

One of the key campaigners leading the way in exposing these dealings is Liberal Democrat Councillor Esmond Jenkins. Elected to represent the Water Park ward with a landslide 70% in a 2009 by-election, Esmond has since played a pivotal role in exposing the events at the Water Park.

But in a turn of events so farcical it could only take place in the sleepy local government district of the Cotswolds, Esmond is being hauled before a Standards Board hearing to defend himself against claims he “bullied” officers at Cotswolds District Council.

Liberal Democrat Peer Lord Tyler has accused the Council of “tying up” the councillor in a “ludicrously trivial investigation”.

As if this wasn’t bad enough, complaints have come from the head of the company at the heart of Water Park re-development, Watermark Ltd. And Cotswold District Council’s very own Chief Exec, whose job description requires neutrality, has added his voice to the debate, commenting to the press.

Please show your support for Esmond, by liking our Facebook page “Esmond is Innocent” where you can find more links to the extensive press coverage of this affair.

* Sean Davey is the Chair of London Liberal Youth

Read more by or more about , , or .
This entry was posted in Local government and News.
Advert

Post a Comment

Lib Dem Voice welcomes comments from everyone but we ask you to be polite, to be on topic and to be who you say you are. You can read our comments policy in full here. Please respect it and all readers of the site.

To have your photo next to your comment please signup your email address with Gravatar.

Your email is never published. Required fields are marked *

*
*
Please complete the name of this site, Liberal Democrat ...?

Advert

Recent Comments

  • Nick Baird
    @Jana - there is a huge difference between the relatively confined space of the Black Sea (and the Azov Sea in particular) and the North Atlantic where the area...
  • Steve Trevethan
    Might the "Future of War "and its present state also be affected by decisions relating to deciding who are the actual enemies? Might the Russia-Ukrains war b...
  • Edward marsh
    Thanks for the comment Jana. I’m not sure it’s “wrong” per say as the navy has a wide reach of maritime security responsibilities, many I outlined, the ...
  • James Hargrave
    A timely piece given current events. Chronic underinvestment in our energy resilience (especially gas) has left us very exposed, and assuming that isn't solved ...
  • Jana
    This article started well but the conclusion is wrong. Ukraine has successfully forced the surviving elements of the once mighty Russian Black Sea Fleet to retr...