Letter: David Roberts’ Attempts to Discredit Me Are Wrong

Published on: 31 Mar, 2023
Updated on: 1 Apr, 2023

The “Battle for Guildford” campaign video

From: Robin Horsley

In response to: We Should Be Wary of Media Professionals

I am grateful to The Guildford Dragon NEWS for alerting me to David Robert’s long and rather desperate attempts to discredit me.

However, I am in France currently with my wife Sophie (she is half-French) enjoying a few days away. This is partly to make up for a Christmas and New Year period that was dominated, not by fun and relaxation with family and friends, but by a last-minute campaign to stop R4GV (with GGG in tow) from destroying our home town. So I will be relatively brief.

As I explained in the interview with The Dragon, my political position is neutral on the parties standing for election at the Borough Elections on May 4 other than that, I suggest that anyone who wants to avoid the building of tower blocks in our town centre should avoid voting for R4GV or their electoral partners (GGG).

It is inevitable that if R4GV and GGG were to gain control of the council, that they would push the proposal through again (probably with nothing more than a very minor change) and decide it in favour of the applicant Savills (acting as agents for the development consortium St Edwards).

I am grateful for David Robert’s admiration for my work, but if he thinks I am some kind of extreme right-wing film-maker and master propagandist then I am afraid that impression is no more than the work of his fevered imagination.

I am not a Conservative, or a Liberal Democrat, but I am happy to credit either, and others as appropriate, for positive actions they take for our borough and our town, as those who have watched “The Battle for Guildford” will know.

I am not working for anyone else. I am a Global Citizen, a proud European, British, Englishman and of most relevance today, I am, by upbringing, residency and conviction a Guildfordian Democrat and I believe that the good people of the Borough of Guildford should, in their great collective wisdom, decide.

Responses to Letter: David Roberts’ Attempts to Discredit Me Are Wrong

Robin Horsley Reply

March 31, 2023 at 8:48 pm

The applicant was actually Savills – see the GBC refusal notice.
Ramsey Nagaty Reply

March 31, 2023 at 9:03 pm

How does Robin Horsley equate GGG with R4GV on this issue when GGG were the only party who argued for a height limit? Yet he says he is not political!

GGG may have voted for development in the town as we believe in building on sustainable brownfield locations and all planning judgements were clearly “on balance” for the development proposed.

Building in the town will revitalise our high street shops and the derelict area so in need of development. We would have preferred lower heights but there again the Tory Local Plan had even more homes and a big retail shopping mall and that would surely have been higher, denser and much less appropriate.

Ramsey Nagaty is the leader of the Guildford Greenbelt Group at Guildford Borough Council