Councillor Carol Taylor has issued the following statement concerning her resignation.

“My decision to resign from the Conservative party and become an independent councillor is not through any disagreements with my colleagues. It is purely on the basis that I feel that I need to retain my ability to be able to say what I want to say when I want to say it
“I am still the same person who wants to represent the people of Witham ward and Boston, and I hope to continue with my determination to serve the public to the very best of my ability.
“I realise that there may be a request for a by- election but I have no intention of resigning as a Boston Borough Councillor. My rationale for this is that I maintain my total commitment to the people of Witham ward and Boston , none of this changes the person I am and continue to be. I hope that the public will understand and support my decision.
“This decision has not been taken lightly. I have given it a great deal of thought and consideration. To be true to myself, I could not take the easy option which would have been to carry on and say nothing. This alternative would not be in the best interests for the public, myself or the Conservative party.
“I stood for election in May because I felt that I had a lot to offer the people of Witham ward and was overwhelmed when I won the election with 439 votes.
“Whilst I accept that some of the electorate voted for me as a Conservative, the fact that I polled the highest number of votes of all candidates for that ward, leads to believe that many voted for Carol Taylor rather than just for the Conservative candidate.”

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

There’s been a swift reaction to the news that former Conservative Councillor Carol Taylor has left the council’s ruling Tory group and joined the Independents on Boston Borough Council.
An early call for a by-election has been made by English Democrat Councillor Elliott Fountain.
In a round robin e-mail to every councillor - plus Lorraine Bush, the council’s Democratic Services Manager - he writes:
“With the recent news that Carol Taylor has left the Conservatives and will be Independent, I think that it is very important that a by-election for the Witham ward takes place at the earliest convenience in the name of democracy, and to give the people a fair chance to decide if they want a Conservative councillor for that ward or in fact want an Independent or otherwise.
“It will be totally unfair to wait three years and ten months to let the public voice their opinions at the ballot box as the Boston Bypass Independents did.
“I do hope that Carol and all elected members can agree on this for many reasons but namely it is the "PUBLIC" that we serve and deserve the chance to vote.
“If costs are given for an excuse not to have a by-election then I will quit and thus create a by-election for Fenside ward anyway - but this is true democracy and people deserve this.
“May I also suggest that if anyone else wants to jump ship or quit to have a by-election, now would be the best time …
“To win a seat under the landslide of the Conservatives and then to go to another group is plain wrong, and it is fair to say that the people of Witham ward used their democratic right to vote in a Conservative candidate.
“So at the very least Carol should stand aside and be replaced by a Conservative councillor.
“Without prejudice
“Kind Regards
“Elliott Fountain”
So far there has been no statement from Councillor Taylor – although we understand that one may be issued later.
Nor have we had any reaction from council leader Peter Bedford.
But as soon as we hear anything, you will be the first to know….

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

Conservative Councillor Carol Taylor - who only yesterday defended the party’s voting strategy as united but individual – has dramatically quit the Tories and joined the Independent Group on Boston Borough Council.
Councillor Taylor, who jointly represents the town’s Witham ward with fellow Conservative and Mayor Mary Wright, is Chairman of the council’s Licensing/Regulatory and Appeals Committee
She has lived in Boston since 2003 and is a NHS registered nurse. In her pre-election address she told voters that she lived in the ward, felt strongly that it should be represented by a resident, and if elected would “work tirelessly to support you, Witham Ward, and the town. I promise you my total commitment. Together we will strive to deliver a better future for everyone.”
Yesterday’s surprise move makes the former Boston bypass independent party seem stable by comparison - at least it took several months before it started to fall apart.
But the Conservatives seem determined to go one better at every level – starting with ignoring the rules and protocol, and ending yesterday with the forced departure of a promising newcomer who took the job of councillor seriously and who wanted do the best possible job for the electorate.
Once again the Big Blue Dragon and captive Dragonistas have put party before people and cut any free thinkers adrift.
The new shape of Boston borough Council is now:
Conservatives 18
Independents. 5
Boston bypass independents 4
Labour 3
English Democrats 2
Councillor Taylor's departure is surely not a spur of the moment decision.
No-one who quits this early into the game does so unless the seeds of doubt were sown well prior to yesterday's decision.
What caused the problem we do not know.
But clearly there have been failures by the new leadership to convince anyone who questions the party line to ignore their conscience and keep in step with the regime.
Problematically, the messages we are receiving are telling us that our new Conservatives masters clearly care little for democracy.
Apparently, they would rather return to the cosy days when things went just the way they wanted rather than deliver on promises of openness and transparency.
The “old school" dominance is clear for all to see.
Only yesterday, Councillor Taylor was at pains in these pages to point out that being a Conservative councillor did not mean that members voted to order; that they did not merely follow the pack and toe the party line.
She said that criticism of a mass vote for a BTAC project in Central Park meant either “1) That we cannot form an individual opinion “or “2) That we are all united in our decision to vote on an issue based on individual opinions which as a team believe is the correct way forward. “I am going for the latter!
Obviously a point was being made here, but there may also have been a possible subtext which saw a defence of the Tory mindset transmute into a difference if opinion between Councillor Taylor and the boys in blue who run the shop.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

"Thinking alike

doesn't mean

toeing the party line"

Given the so-called “leadership style” of the former Boston Borough Council administration the BBI – the stick without the carrot, and quite often the cart before the horse – it’s not surprising that people have been keeping a watchful eye on the way that the Conservatives are settling in.
Certainly they did not get off to the best of starts, and now we are hearing impressions that that the new leadership style may differ little in some ways from that their predecessors.
A recent writer to Boston Eye was critical of the en masse support at the last meeting of BTAC – the Boston Town Area Committee, where one agenda item proposed spending £10,000 on a garden area in Central Park.
However, one Conservative councillor has come forward to make the point that a full house in the voting deck does not necessarily mean that everyone involved is unthinking.

"'But all the Conservatives think it's good' and 'because every Conservative on the panel thought it more important...'  are part of two statements in last weeks Boston Eye,” Witham Ward Councillor Carol Taylor writes in an e-mail.
“These, to me suggest two things.
1) That we cannot form an individual opinion
“or
“2) That we are all united in our decision to vote on an issue based on individual opinions which as a team believe is the correct way forward.
“I am going for the latter! Why? With regard to the town centre plans, I have yet to form an opinion until I fully understand the benefits or otherwise - proving that not all Conservatives think it is a good idea because I haven't told anyone what I think yet!
“In response to  'the attendee' at the BTAC meeting - there were many comments made during this meeting regarding how and where to spend this money, and it was as a result of these comments which convinced me to vote for the money to be allocated to the town centre project.
“Originally from what I understand, several hundred pounds were available to spend in each ward but as pointed out, there is very little you can buy which would see beneficial results to those individual constituencies.
“I chose to go with the town centre project because I, that is me! thinks it is a good idea for everyone in Boston to reap the benefits.
“My decision was not just based on a diagrammatic view of what it would look like but also on my own, that is my, as in me, being able to look ahead using my, that is my own and not a Conservative ability to visualise the completion, and - dare I say it? - imagine how good it will look for not only the people of Boston but also visitors to our great town
“Finally, I, that is, me, cannot see the point in waiting if the money is readily available.
“The benefits can be enjoyed sooner rather than numerous meetings deciding how to allocate the funds. This decision is representative of a new administration doing something to enhance the town of Boston for its local people and visitors.”

We’re grateful to Councillor Taylor for her e-mail, and are happy to be able to provide a platform for her views – which we hope will be echoed by all of her fellow Conservative councillors.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.

Week ending 1st July

Our Friday miscellany

of the week's

news and events

Boston’s clamp-down culture takes pride of place on the front page of both our local “newspapers” – which are rapidly becoming little more than an extension of the Worst Street propaganda machine. Count the council stories if you don’t believe us. Both the Standard and Target lead on the “war” on litter louts – based on a triumphant account of a £75 fine for a driver spotted throwing a cigarette end from his car window. However, one swallow does not a summer make, as they say. We’ve never bothered to keep a tally, but if we had, we would probably have noted a bewildering amount of trumpeting from the council and the local police over the years about how they are going to “get tough” with litter louts, cyclists using the pedestrian areas and pavements, dog fouling, fly posters and tippers and other sundry ne’er do wells. The trouble is that this never happens. They make the noises, do nothing, let a few months go by then make the noises all over again. It really is the time for the powers that be to put their money where their mouth is. After all, actions speak louder than words.
Having said that, we wonder how much people really care. A petition calling for the council to bring back a dog warden – which was launched in April and expires in August – has so far attracted three signatures … and that includes the petitioner. More encouragingly, a second petition calling for a separate green waste collection has attracted 24 names. Despite that we hold out little hope of anything being done in either case. The council wants at least 10 signatures for a petition to become valid – so the dog warden plea looks doomed to fail. And we are sure it will be an easy task to kick the green waste petition into touch with what are still so few names. We have a feeling that – despite making it a plank of their election manifesto – the Tories are now less enthusiastic about doing much more on the green waste issue – for the rest of this year, at least.
Given all the external problems faced by people trying to get in and out of Boston over the past several months, we think that it might be nice to see some sort of goodwill gesture. We’re thinking in particular of parking in the town on a Sunday. On each of the past couple of weekends, we’ve seen a very zealous Meteor parking official busying himself with the issue of tickets. At least one case that we saw was for the relatively minor offence where a vehicle tax disc was displayed on the dashboard, rather than in the windscreen. Turn a blind eye? Leave a note to say be more careful next time? No. Out came the camera and the ticket book and kerchinng! A few more quid in someone’s kitty. But whose? The parking and machines belong to the borough but are “policed” by Meteor. More cash for the borough, then. Given the parking chaos due to start from July 11th when the Market Place refurbishment scheme begins – how about introducing free parking … just for Sunday? Enough revenue will be lost through the parking ban in the Market Place during the refurbishment period, so a few extra quid wouldn’t really hurt. And think of the PR benefits.
We’ve heard several criticisms over the years that some staff at Boston Borough Council prefer our feathered friends to people. Certainly, the only items on the borough’s internet what’s on pages for many months featured mostly RSPB events. Now the council has gone so far as to team up with the bird lovers’ charity to appeal to builders to create access for Swifts when they are renovating properties. A good idea, but surely not a priority on the pecking order – there are so many other things that the borough could be dealing with more swiftly than this one!
Meanwhile, our comments last week about the danger of the borough’s website becoming a showcase for the Tories generated a swift reaction – if you’ll excuse the pun! We felt that a plug for a local Conservative drop-in session should be extended to councillors from all parties. The council’s Communications Manager, Andrew Malkin, has responded by offering just such an opportunity to any councillors who wish to take it up. We hope that they will seize the chance to let their electorate know how to get in touch. Interestingly, the Bridging the Mismatch report which we mentioned yesterday said that it was felt that elected members and officers were either not visible or not available in the community. “There were requests for additional members’ surgeries in communities, and for officers to be more visible in community settings.” So far, Boston Borough Council now lists six of the 32 councillors as holding public sessions. It’s a start, but we’d like to see more.
After our posting concerning worries about the Market Place refurbishment, a regular reader carried out a snap survey in the form of casual conversations with various stall holders. He reports: “Most are obviously concerned about having to relocate and the potential for a negative impact on trade. Many said that they will give it a month or so and probably would not bother thereafter if their trade is adversely affected to any noticeable degree. All mentioned that they have been advised that the buses will NOT be running through town on market days. As far as the regular traders have been advised, there will be no stalls permitted anywhere on the present site after 11th July. I’m not sure about the validity of the last two items, but they appear to be the common perception.” So is this a thin end of the wedge which might show that the Into Town buses can stay on schedule without herding pedestrians like cattle and poisoning them with fumes?  Given what’s already been said by the Tory leadership, we somehow doubt it. Meanwhile, another reader commented on our question  asking why so few shopkeepers turned up for the market place meeting. “The feedback I got was ‘why bother? They do not listen, so why waste our time?’"
Still with the impact on the Market Place work on the local community, we congratulate BBI councillors Helen Staples and Alison Austin for suggesting using Pump Square for disabled parking. The present plan is to create temporary spaces on Bargate Green and Custom House Quay which are both something of a hike for the less than able bodied. We note that council officers are to meet both councillors to “discuss their ideas and the possibility of their implementation.” We hope that they don’t find any obstacles.
Our photo of the week award goes to this gem on the front page of the latest Boston Borough Council Bulletin – which shows Leisure Services portfolio holder Councillor Yvonne Gunter with the Hallaton Helmet – part of a treasure hoard on display at the town’s Guildhall. We’re seldom given to lyricism, but we have to admire the way the photographer’s flash has burnished the Medusan coils of the helmet as they encircle the wearer’s head.

Pardon….? You say she’s holding it? We thought she was wearing it? But the display next to her head says … Oh b****r!  (Any chance we can get this back from the printers …? Ed)
Last week we reported comments by one councillor to the effect that the Tories had voted en masse on a £10,000 garden feature in Central Park. One Conservative councillor has taken issue with the suggestion that this means that they are not  still independent thinkers. Find out more in Monday’s blog.

You can write to us at boston.eye@googlemail.com  Your e-mails will be treated in confidence and published anonymously if requested.