Sir John Redwood
I received an email from Wokingham Borough Council telling me that leaseholders were having problems with their Management companies, and naming a specific example where they thought the Management company needed regulating.
I replied asking to be in touch with the leaseholders so I could learn directly from them what the specific issues were so I could help them with the Management company.
A month on, I have not been told by the Council of any individual constituent who does have a problem where I can assist.
I am told that the Council has been complaining that some of the MPs they contacted did not respond.
It seems that this was a political stunt email to see if local MPs do give a good service.
I am pleased to help with any queries on management companies or anything else from my constituents as is evidenced by the large amount of correspondence and requests I receive each month.
I do give a seven day a week service to constituents with questions they send me by email or through my website. I provide a daily commentary on what general issues I am taking up, what issues matter and what I think the answers are to general problems affecting constituents on www.johnredwood.com.
I do not reveal individual cases, respecting people’s confidentiality when they seek help.
I prefer the Council to handle the matters where they control the budget and have the powers, as with local planning, roads, refuse collection, social housing and the Council tax. I regret to say there are plenty of complaints at the moment about the way the Council is behaving on these matters.
The public wants a weekly, good quality refuse service. We want decent standards of environmental maintenance, plenty of litter bins and roads that people can use to get to work and to take children to school without Council induced traffic jams. All that is eminently affordable given the grants the Council receives from central government.
Instead we see a Council desperate to spend money on worsening road junctions, narrowing roads and making drivers lives more difficult. This is the Council which has closed roads and placed barriers on one side of a two lane two direction road, causing delays and dangers that did not exist before.
The Council says it is short of money yet it has substantial balances from past prudent financial management by the previous Conservative administration, and has received a large increase in its social services grants, substantial schools money, money for new SEN provision and much else from the government.
I have myself argued successfully for additional monies for these purposes with Ministers. I have taken up our wishes to see fewer new homes in an area that has taken a lot of building in recent years.
The Council needs to start work on a new local plan, as without an up-to-date local plan the area will be more vulnerable to the grant of further building permissions by Planning Inspectors.
Sir John Redwood is the MP for Wokingham
