Windsor Out-of-Control!

After a much needed break in a warm & sunny location I returned to my flat in Windsor yesterday - only to find the latest edition of the "Windsor Eton Express" with the front page story detailing the latest grim tale of anti-social problems in Windsor.   

I previously wrote about the topic over a month ago.

It is shameful that a visitor to our town should experience something like this, but it is not the least bit of a surprise.  I am appalled that Sandra Tingle and her sister had to experience such a disgraceful display of our youth at their finest.

   Let's hope our fearless leaders on the RBWM council take notice of the situaton and be proactive for a change instead of waiting for someone to be killed.

Something Smells Rotten at 67 Alma Road

Just as I decided to sit back and relax with a wee cuppa - through my postbox came the latest edition of the local Liberal Democrat newsletter called the "Focus".   What caught my eye was the article "Conservatives blamed as massive office block approved".  Now the Thames Tattler has been around long enough to take all political literature with a massive lump of salt so I decided to do a little checking of my own.  So much for relaxing - in the process the tea even went cold!  (Now mind you it takes quite a bit for the Thames Tattler to forget her tea...)

Well it seems that the RBWM Council gave the green light and the royal red carpet - practically with trumpets blasting for the MASSIVE office project proposed by St Congar Properties. I can almost picture the councillors, developers and estate agents together behind closed doors with the champagne glasses clinking.  I can imagine the estate agents mentally tallying up the pounds and the councillors giddy with the anticipation of the promise of loads of money to be given to the RBWM in exchange for allowing the development.  (In my opinion that's nothing more than a legal bribe.) 

Oh let's never mind the monster-sized office building is being squashed into an area not intended to absorb a structure half its size, let alone the parking and traffic problems that are sure to follow.

But what happened next I'm quite sure the unsuspecting councillors were never expecting - a huge public outcry and organised opposition to the development!  Oh dear....our councillors must have fretted over this unexpected uprising, especially since election time is drawing so terribly near.

So what is a councillor to do next?  Naturally, they must have a sudden (and very public) change of heart and put the resident's minds at ease by telling them, oh no my darling Windsorians, we could not possibly support such a blantantly inappropriate development.  Instead, we'll let those nasty developers take it to Appeals.  That way we can wipe our hands of all responsibility (*wink*wink*) and let someone else make the decision for us.  

What the councillors failed to mention is that they were going to remove their objection to that teeny tiny little problem regarding traffic and parking, therefore ensuring the Appeals office would have no obstacle in the way of approving the project.

And of course, as the sad story goes, the development has been given approval - did anyone expect differently?  The champagne is back out again and the glasses are clinking.  The only losers are the residents of Windsor.  This current council, in the Thames Tattler's opinion, may well prove to be the most damaging council in Windsor's history.

If you care to read through all the gorey details - you can find them here if you can stomach it.  After investigating this issue I can tell you the Thames Tattler has switched from tea to something a little stronger...

Council Elections Coming Soon!

Oh dear I can tell it must be that time again as it seems every day I find more political brochures at my door.   On the 5th of May all the Borough's 57 council seats will be up for election. 

Interested to find out more about my local councillors, I have actually been reading through every bit of info I receive and anything else I can get my hands on.

Unfortunately all I seem to find from the usual parties is information about national party politics.  Now the Thames Tattler is hardly a party hack, but I've been around politics long enough to know the local councillors have nothing to do with decisions made at the national level.  

Current RBWM Councillors - How about some news about what you've actually accomplished since the last election?   To new candidates - why are you standing and why should I vote for you?   Seems to me too many of you are resting on your laurels riding the party train.  Don't forget, "High trees catch lots of wind." (Dutch proverb).   Dearest councillors, you are little shrubs, not trees.

  Bring yourselves back down to the realities of the job you will be doing if elected please...

Councillor Attendance Records

It's a rainy day in Windsor and what better way for the Thames Tattler to spend a day off of work...but to look up the attendance records of our councillors we have elected to run our lovely borough.  I found all the figures published on the RBWM website.  I was a little surprised at what I found, but let's first start with the councillors who have a perfect score and attended 100% of meetings.  

Out of the 57 councillors that are elected to represent the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead - there were unfortunately only THREE with perfect attendance:

Elizabeth Barton
Clive Baskerville
Eric Wiles

Left to right:  Elizabeth Barton, Clive Baskerville, Eric Wiles

Good job Councillors!

And now the bad news - I've gone through the records and listed the councillors with the worst attendance.  Would any of us stay employed in our jobs if our attendance records were this poor?   Dear councillors - if you don't want to or can't do the job you were elected to do - please step aside and allow us to elect someone else to take your place. 

Hazel Wilson - only attended 24% of meetings.
Humaira Khan  - only attended 31% of meetings.
Barry Thompson - only attended 32% of meetings.
Simon Meadowcraft - only attended 48% of meetings.
Paul Etherington - only attended 50% of  meetings.
Alison Knight - only attended 50% of meetings.
Norma Herdson - only attended 55% of meetings.

Left to right:  Humaira Khan, Barry Thompson, Hazel Wilson