Disillusioned: Third Tory quits council

Graham Oliver says he is "completely disillusioned" and that continuing as a Rother member would have been a waste of his time and energies.

He accuses Cllr Graham Gubby - returned unopposed last week as leader - of a presidential style of leadership.

The leader in response says: "I am grateful for the contribution he made and am sorry he has left the council. He will have his own reasons for leaving which are a matter for him."

Councillor Oliver's resignation follows closely on that of immediate ex-Town Mayor and lead cabinet member for regeneration Stuart Earl and of hair salon boss Martin Horscroft.

Graham Oliver's resignation with immediate effect as a Sackville Ward member means that where no district council elections were due in Bexhill this year there will now be three by-elections.

They will take place on May 4.

Stuart Earl's resignation for family reasons means that St Mark's ward voters will be going to the polls.

Martin Horscroft had not attended Rother meetings for some time. His resignation means that Kewhurst Ward voters will be going to the polls.

This week Stuart Earl said there was no link between his resignation and Graham Oliver's.

He told the Observer: "I left for my own personal family reasons.

"I am still fully supportive of the Conservative group and will do all I can to improve the lot of Rother residents in general and Bexhill residents in particular.

"At the right opportunity I would consider standing again for election to serve the town.

"I would do so because I believe that if you have the time, the energy and the interest and have something to give the town you should do it. I did enjoy every bit of being a councillor and mayor."

Graham Oliver, accountant to a Bexhill manufacturing company, won a by-election victory in September 2004. He had previously served three and a half years as a Rother councillor.

He told the Observer this week that in seeking re-election he had believed with his financial background and previous Rother experience that he had something to offer the electorate.

But he says his attempts to make a study of Rother's finances and to suggest regeneration ideas have been thwarted.

From a narrow band of options for reform, Rother replaced the old committee system with the leader-and-cabinet form of government.

Graham Oliver says in his letter of resignation - made available to the Observer at its request: "I have been completely disillusioned as a councillor from some six months after being elected...

"I felt that it is a complete waste of my further time and energies. The structure that exists will never let the likes of me, an ordinary councillor, have any particular say in shaping future policy and progress or anything, except when it is required that I vote and tow the party line."

He has been a member of finance working group set up by Rother. But he says: "Real things like staffing levels and the cost, saving monies so that funds may be released for some regeneration work to be carried out at no cost to the Rother Council taxpayers are ignored."

He argues that the cabinet does not have a "financial orientated" person sitting on it.

He adds: "The people of Rother in my opinion don't stand a chance of getting value for money by real savings being made.

"I proposed some nine months ago that a proper system of monitoring of expenditure by department be introduced and presented to councillors and I was virtually laughed down and belittled."

He says the system has been successful adopted by Conservative-led Kent County Council.

He has told Cllr Gubby: "The only way forward for Rother is through teamwork, leading by example and by taking the whole team with you.

"In the current state of Rother you might as well be president, because all the time you are doing just what you want..."

He claims that fellow Conservative councillors had been "severely embarrassed" that public toilets closed after "pontificating" about economic reasons had been re-opened.

"What a climb-down, what an embarrassment in the first place to ditch the infrastructure and heritage that our Victorian ancestors built."