Tuesday 11 September 2007

H&F Conservatives Shut Another School

Parents accused H&F Tories of “putting residents last” yesterday evening when Conservative councillors voted to close Peterborough Primary School during a chaotic cabinet meeting.

The packed public meeting was stunned when cabinet members seemed unaware of the issues relating to the school closure and started to question their own officials during the meeting. Cllr. Mark Loveday, (Con) the Cabinet Member for Strategy said “Excess places is an issue that furnishes our thinking” and went on to question how many excess places Peterborough Primary School had. He then voted to close the school, despite being told that it had very few and one of the lowest percentages of empty places in the borough.

However, the schools closure falls into Cllr. Antony Lillis’ (Con) brief. He told local residents - who had taken the trouble to turn up to the meeting - that he had made his mind up before the meeting started and “there is nothing that anyone can say tonight to make me change it”. Cllr. Lillis admitted that he had begun negotiations with the French Government to sell off the land the school sits on while the consultation process was still running.

During the last year Cllr. Lillis has been responsible for trying to close Hurlingham and Chelsea Secondary School, increasing meals-on-wheels charges by £200.75, ending home care for 550 elderly, sick and disabled local residents, closing down community centres in the poorest areas, trying to close two primary schools, closing down and selling off youth facilities, introducing telephone interviews to deny elderly people services, cutting legal support for the underprivileged, ending funding to key local charities and successfully closing Peterborough Primary School last night. He has developed a reputation as the most unpopular Tory in the borough.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pretty low post there Stephen. Required a more dignified response methinks!

Anonymous said...

I was there last night and wanted to thank you, Mr Macloghlan and the others on your side for sticking up for us. I thought Mr Lillis did not answer any questions and didn't seem bothered what would happen to our kids. He and the others were very rude to all of you. i don't know how you kept your cool.
Thank you
X

Anonymous said...

I attended the meeting where councillors Lillis, Greenhalgh, Loveday et al ended care services to 1400 disabled people. They couldn't answer any of the questions they were asked and ended shouting at the opposition councillors for asking them.

What a shower!!!

Anonymous said...

They were exactly the same with us. Rude and obnoxious.