AN OUTSPOKEN councillor has been condemned after suggesting Thames Valley Police are ignoring the borough’s drug problems.
Councillor Tony Page made the startling claim while defending a proposed £24m Mass Rapid Transport scheme.
Under the plans, a single lane bus lane bridge would be plonked on the historic beauty spot where the River Thames meets the start of the Kennet and Avon Canal.
Wokingham Borough Council’s planning committee turned the proposals down earlier this year after deeming it an eyesore and out of keeping with the area.
The revised plans are now on consultation and the only major change is making the gigantic bridge green.
If it goes ahead, the scheme will dwarf the historic and listed horseshoe bridge that was designed by Brunel.
The idea behind the project is that it will link a 250 space park and ride being built at Thames Valley Park with the Vastern Road end of Reading’s railway station.
Earley Town Council has come out against the plans and there is a strong residents’ campaign in a bid to preserve thousands of trees and the natural beauty of the area.
The Deputy Leader of Reading Borough Council said the controversial project would improve and enhance the area around the Horseshoe Bridge which he has described as “a shoddy and neglected stretch of riverbank.”
Cllr Page also claimed the riverbank along the Thames was blighted by drug abuse and anti-social behaviour.
When asked by The Wokingham Paper if these were not issues the police and the social work department should address he replied: “What planet are you on?”
He added: “Do the police take much action against drug dealers in any area?”
Cllr Page said a number of riverboats were illegally moored and the area was overgrown.
When asked by The Wokingham Paper if he had any evidence of drug dealing in the area he replied: “The evidence is the people who go along there.”
He added: “Dealing has been quite noticeable.”
His comments brought a swift rebuke from Thames Valley Police.
In a terse statement, they said: “We take a robust approach and will not tolerate these crimes in our communities. Our ongoing Stronghold campaign aims to fight organised crime, including drugs offences, in partnership.”
A police spokesperson said if Cllr Page was aware of specific incidents of drug dealing he should report them to Thames Police. Operation Stronghold has seized 46kg of drugs.
Cllr Page told The Wokingham Paper the MRT scheme would bring “substantial riverside improvements” including three legal moorings and better lighting while increased presence of buses and cyclists would help to deter anti-social behaviour and drug dealing.
But his comments were also criticised by John Sharpe from the pressure group SOAR which is fighting the MRT scheme.
“The councillor should look closer to home if he is concerned about drugs,” said Mr Sharpe.
“You can’t move in Reading for drug dealing and I believe Councillor Page’s own ward is one of the worst.
“He has upset local people by describing their much loved area of Thames riverside as shoddy and neglected. Now his great plan to tackle the social problems in Reading is to spend £31.5m on a bus flyover.
“He just can’t accept the whole scheme is a failure. It is his legacy and he is desperate for it to be built despite the cost in money or to the environment.”
