STONE Town Council’s public question time has been branded “undemocratic” by a former councillor who had to give two weeks’ notice to raise an issue under council rules.
Lin Davies said she was also left reeling by a current town councillor’s criticism of her questions relating to the town council’s understanding of the development proposals for Westbridge Park.
Councillor Geoff Collier described Mrs Davies’ question on the Stafford Borough Plan as “political”.
Mrs Davies had asked if the town council understood the term “mixed use development”, mentioned in the Plan for Stafford Borough’s proposals for Westbridge Park, and what input Stone’s borough councillors had had into the plan.
The question was due to be answered by the chair of the town council’s general purposes committee, but Councillor Philip Jones was absent from Tuesday’s meeting and had prepared a written statement.
Councillor Collier, vice chairman of the committee, was invited to read out the statement but declined as he had not been consulted on the matter.
Instead the statement was read out by the town council clerk.
But some fellow councillors disagreed with the statement, in which Councillor Jones had said the council did not understand the wording of mixed use development, saying they did understand the term.
