Town Meeting "little more than a political stunt"

4.39.00pm GMT Mon 9th Feb 2004

Hythe Cllr Neil Matthews

The Town Meeting held last Wednesday, 4th February, has been dismissed by local Lib Dems as unrepresentative.

Around 70 people attended the meeting, but it was immediately clear that almost every person present was an active member of a local political party.

Cllr Neil Matthews commented "My colleagues and I attended the meeting in good faith to talk with the townspeople of Hythe.

"Like the handful of non-political people who attended, we were deeply disappointed to find the meeting was little more than a political stunt by Conservatives and their friends."

"Last May thousands of people voted the Conservatives out of office in Hythe. They voted Liberal Democrat and backed our policies to sort out the District's finances, and invest in our area. I am not surprised that the Conservatives who spoke at the meeting disagree with these priorities, but they should respect the mandate we were given at the local elections."