Blaenavon councillor quits independents' group (From South Wales Argus)

Blaenavon councillor quits independents' group

9:20am Wednesday 6th May 2009 in News By Alex Cinus

QUIT: Cllr Tom Huish

TORFAEN councillor Tom Huish has left the Independent group, citing increasing problems with party politics in the council chamber.

Cllr Huish, was elected as a Torfaen councillor for the Blaenavon ward in 2004 and joined the Independent Group in 2008.

He was part of the Independent group which joined Torfaen People's Coalition, which unsuccessfully attempted to take control from Labour at the council last year.

Since then Cllr Huish says he has seen a rise in the use of party politics at Torfaen council and now wants to remain a “fully independent member”.

He said: “After much consideration, I have decided to leave the Independent group of Torfaen County Borough Council to perform my role as a fully independent member of the council.

“I was not happy with the way things were going in the last 12 months in terms of the increasing amount of party politics going-on.

“The use of party politics can be divisive, whether it is used by a single party or by a coalition of parties.

“Instructions to toe the party line by the leaders of such groups can be counter-productive to the smooth running of local councils.

“In extreme cases, the decisions that these parties make can alienate the very people they were elected to serve.

“I intend to continue to serve the communities I represent in that role to the best of my ability and I leave with no animosity at all.”

Torfaen council remained under Labour control last year despite the party’s poor local election results.

Labour's 18 councillors alone were not enough to take power and a Torfaen People's Coalition of independent, Conservative, People's Voice and Liberal Democrat councillors, led by Blaenavon councillor Stuart Evans, were poised to take control.

But thanks to the support of three newly-elected Plaid Cymru councillors and two newly-elected Independents, councillor Bob Wellington was re-elected as leader and Labour remained in control at the council's annual general meeting.

Leader of Torfaen council’s opposition group, Stuart Evans, said: “Councillor Huish has set out his reasons for leaving the Independent party and we will respect his decision.

“I still feel we can count on his support in the future. He is a good councillor who works hard for the ward of Blaenavon.”