I WOULD like to take this opportunity to point out some erroneous and misleading information that has been circulated around the town recently.

Crediton Town Council is not under the control of the Liberal Democrat Party.  The town council has 12 councillors.  Six of these have declared affiliation to the Liberal Democrat party.

Six councillors have no declared political affiliations and are independent.

I am currently the Town Mayor and I chair the Full Town Council meetings. In the event of a tied vote, the Chair has the casting vote.

I am one of the town councillors who is independent of any political party.  Therefore the town council is not under the control of the six Liberal Democrat councillors and they are not, on their own, responsible for town council decisions.

A tied vote has never happened at Full Council because most decisions are reached through discussion, consensus and majority agreement.  Decisions are not made along party lines.

The council is at its best when councillors listen to each other, co-operate and work as a team for the good of the community.

This is the approach I encourage because it leads to a more effective council and this is the approach we take together.

The six independent town councillors are independent of the “Independents for Crediton” (IfC).

IfC is the organised group that has circulated leaflets, claiming incorrectly that the council is Liberal Democrat controlled.

The group makes other claims that I would dispute but those are matters of opinion.  I have written now to point out a factual error.

The town council is always willing to talk to residents about our plans, proposals and projects.

The Annual Town Meeting, which is for everyone in the town, is on Monday, March 13 at 7pm at Crediton Library.  It is an opportunity for residents to raise issues of importance to them and all are welcome.

Cllr Liz Brookes-Hocking

Mayor and Chair of Crediton Town Council