Leader Of The Council Resigns

The leader of Swindon Borough Council, Sue Bates, has announced that she is to resign. Last night she told her Labour party colleagues, and has now asked the Mayor if she can formally announce her resignation at a full council meeting in two weeks time. She said personality clashes have influenced her decision.

We welcome the resignation of Labours Sue Bates as Council Leader.  Her dreadful leadership led to the shocking state of council services we see today. 

Consider the high-profile failures of the Bates era:

• A failing education service
• A failing social services department
• A railway museum that swallows up public money while historic buildings crumble.
• A 15.5% council tax hike, with forecasts of greater hikes to come.

These failures are also Labours collective failures.  Labour is the only party to have had majority control of the council.  Labour politicians have led this council for almost all of its history.  The poor condition of council services taints the entire Labour Party machine. 

Despite the long overdue sacrifice of Sue Bates, her failed footsoldiers remain in office.  Over the years, this ragbag of usual suspects, such as Small, Allsopp, DAvila and Thompson, have engineered an alarming deterioration of council services and forced through massive council tax hikes.

Sue Bates may be the scapegoat for Labours appalling record, but the sacrifice of one does not hide the collective responsibility of the rest.