Letter: Beresford’s Effingham Position ‘Equivocal and Contradictory’

Published on: 28 Mar, 2021
Updated on: 29 Mar, 2021

From: Elizabeth Daly

Lib Dem candidate for The Horsleys in the forthcoming SCC election

In response to: Protests Balloon Over Berkeley Demand for 110 Extra Houses on Green Belt

Sir Paul Beresford claims he and Julie Iles are “united” in wanting a new Howard of Effingham school and yet oppose the “new” enabling housing application which both the school and the developers say they need to build it.

What he doesn’t explain is:

(a) Why he wasn’t equally united in opposing the previous application, which the school and developers claimed had his support at the time, and had been imposed on Effingham by Conservative ministers, in effect using green belt development profits, rather than our fair share of Michael Gove’s education budget, to fund an enlarged and refurbished school?

(b) What he is actually going to do about getting ministers to reverse that decision and fund the school’s rebuilding properly to protect the green belt, now it seems the developers and he himself have changed minds about the feasibility of funding an enlarged school from the existing green belt development scheme?

Some suggestions for Sir Paul: resign the Tory whip, vote against (instead of for) the government’s lousy financial settlements for Surrey’s local schools and join everybody else in calling for the resignation of our vacillating some-mothers-do-‘ave-’em Education Secretary.

There are so many things he could do beyond claiming to be “united” when his own position has been so equivocal and contradictory.

Responses to Letter: Beresford’s Effingham Position ‘Equivocal and Contradictory’

Paul Beresford Reply

March 28, 2021 at 5:55 pm

Elizabeth Daly, Liberal Cllr (Bookham South) is obviously unaware that I did apply pressure on Nicky Morgan, the then Education Secretary (not Michael Gove), for funding. At that time the Conservative-Liberal Coalition Government was trying to sort out the dreadful UK economic mess left by the Brown Labour Government. Capital spending was tight. Hence the Planning Inspector agreed the application.

The question Cllr Daly should be asking is whether the area needs the school to be expanded from 1,600 to 2,000 pupils, bearing in mind there are vacancies in nearby schools and whether the Howard rebuild could therefore be rethought.

Sir Paul Beresford is the Conservative MP for Mole Valley
Tony Mann Reply

March 29, 2021 at 12:08 pm

After voting against (instead of for) Sir Paul Beresford should resign as our MP too!