Letter: The Conservatives Have a Mandate and Are On The Right Track

Published on: 11 Jul, 2015
Updated on: 11 Jul, 2015

From John Williams

The Conservatives were given a clear mandate at the recent elections to continue running the council and from watching the webcast and reading the order paper it was Cllr Mansbridge and Cllr Spooner that made most sense. They spoke with gravitas, so it would seem that the electorate got it right.

I did feel that Councillor Reeves (Lib Dems) also spoke well and this is why she is presumably heading up the opposition.

Just like the last full council meeting the GGG councillors keep going off on irrelevant tangents, taking cheap shots at the Executive, so it is no wonder the ruling Executive don’t want them on their committees; nothing would ever get done.

Cllr Mansbridge has agreed to an investigation into the Juneja investigation and this can only be a good thing.

As I understand it, this will really be an investigation into procedures followed by the councils governance department although it is worth stating now that there is no doubt that like everything else the GGG won’t accept its findings unless Cllr Mansbridge is found to be complicit in Ms Juneja’s crimes and put up in the dock.

Another great waste of council time? Probably.

George Dokimakis in his letter states that Cllr Mansbridge remains in business with discredited Juneja yet I was under the impression through previous articles that he resigned his directorships as soon as the truth was out.

Maybe The Dragon can advise us?

Cllr Mansbridge has the following entries listed under employment in his register of interests at GBC: Shareholder in One Hit Consulting Limited and Director of Two Hit Consultancy Limited.”

Cllr Mansbridge does appear, as has been reported, to have relinquished his directorship on One Hit Consulting but retains an interest. Last August (2014) Cllr Mansbridge said: “There is only one active business, One Hit Consulting. The business activities are interim recruitment, professional services and general consultancy…”

Incidentally, senior sources at the council have told The Dragon that the review will not include the Juneja complaint investigation. Ed

Responses to Letter: The Conservatives Have a Mandate and Are On The Right Track

Adrian Atkinson Reply

July 11, 2015 at 7:02 pm

Having watched the webcast, I am glad that Mr Williams agrees with most people that “Cllr Mansbridge has agreed to an investigation into the Juneja investigation…”

However, it seems far from certain. Could we have got the wrong end of the slippery Guildford Council stick – has he seen this https://guildford-dragon.com/2015/07/10/council-complaints-investigation-review-will-not-include-juneja-case/?

Perhaps people need to stop looking at what is going on in Guildford through party political tinted spectacles of whatever colour. Then, maybe, all of the politicians will start to do their duty and do the right thing for all of the constituents of Guildford rather than serving their individual party ethos.

That is the only real mandate any councillor has been given.
Jim Allen Reply

July 11, 2015 at 11:37 pm

Sadly, it seems to me, we voted, unknowingly, for an elected dictatorship.
George Potter Reply

July 12, 2015 at 6:27 pm

I know that the Conservative party has never been great at the definition of democracy but in what world does a vote share of less than 50% in the council elections equal a mandate to wield 100% of the power on the council?

I don’t expect the Conservatives to ever come out against a broken voting system which gives them a stonking majority of seats with a minority of the vote but they could at least have the decency not to make bogus claims about a mandate which they never received.
Ben Paton Reply

July 13, 2015 at 9:37 am

John Williams accuses some councillors of taking cheap shots at the Executive. He says that they go “off on irrelevant tangents” and “nothing would ever get done” if they were on committees.

Don’t these statements meet his own definition of “cheap shots”?

Mr Williams presupposes he knows what critics’ motives may be and even states what he believes their objectives are.

He says: “it is worth stating now that there is no doubt that like everything else the GGG won’t accept its findings unless Cllr Mansbridge is found to be complicit in Ms Juneja’s crimes and put up in the dock.”

Why is this worth stating? Perhaps Mr Williams wishes to discredit an investigation by prejudging its purpose and outcome?

Mr Williams should answer these questions:

1. Were the council’s Codes of Conduct breached by Ms Juneja?
2. If so, why was she exonerated on the basis of forged documents which she submitted to the Monitoring Officer? Was it because the Executive would not have been satisfied by any other finding – to paraphrase Mr Williams’ hypothesis?
3. Is ascertaining the facts a “waste of time”?
4. Is following the rules and due process a “waste of time”?