Town Hall to suffer following Tory split?

The cross party Town Hall Delivery Group seems to be the latest casualty of the split in the Tory ranks that has seen four Conservative councillors leave the Tory group on the Council and sit as independents.

The group, set up after the Town Hall was saved from development has worked hard over the last eighteen months to try and deliver a buiding that offers mixed use by the Council, community groups and serviced office space for local small businesses under the Chairmanship of Cllr Russell Quirk, an estate agent by trade and one of the four who left the Conservative group led by Cllr Louise McKinlay.

Cllr Quirk has now been removed as Chair by the leader Cllr McKinlay and he and Cllr Baker will, according to his twitter timeline, no longer be a part of the group going forward. Furthermore Cllr McKinlay cancelled the THDG meeting planned for this week at very short notice.

Lib Dem leader Cllr David Kendall, who has served on the group said:

"With political differences put aside, the THDG had worked well together to save the Town Hall and made significant progress in moving the project forward. We have now reached a critical stage in the process and it would have made sense to have kept Cllrs Quirk and Baker as a part of the group and for Cllr McKinlay to take a lead in guiding the project to its conclusion.

"I fear for the future of the Town Hall if we lose the passion, expertise and knowledge that Cllrs Quirk and Baker bought to the table on this issue.

"I now call upon the leader to clearly outline her vision for the Town Hall and her plans for the future of the Town Hall Delivery Group"