The need for honesty and transparency

I AM sure that Mrs Farris was surprised at the hostile reaction in last week’s NWN for her support of Owen Paterson.

Mrs Farris is clearly keen to follow her father in progressing within the Conservative Party, seemingly fast-tracked without doing the hard yards as a district councillor.

The Paterson vote was ultimately about one thing – good governance.

If you have good governance, you are open and accountable and scandals like Patterson in Westminster and the LRIE in West Berkshire do not occur.

More experienced MPs like Theresa May felt support for Mr Paterson was not good governance and abstained.

I think Mrs Farris could learn from older and wiser members . Good governance in Westminster and good governance in West Berkshire are one and the same, both require openness and accountability.

Last week another attempt to find the true cost of the so-called replacement sports ground was met with a refusal.

When the true figure gets out, I would expect many local people to be angry at the profligate expense, as they are at the Paterson debacle. If the council object to my comments, they can always give the precise figure – it is after all our money.

The refusal by the executive of WBC cited “grounds of commercial sensitivity”.

Other than the rugby club being embarrassed about how much and what the terms are, so what?It’s taxpayers’ money.

If this was an opposition council, the Conservatives would be full of righteous indignation and our MP would be using her column to demand answers

In terms of honesty and transparency with public money or public officials, all must be accountable, open and transparent – and as I said earlier, these principles are equally applicable in Westminster as they are in West Berkshire.

IAN HALL Ashampstead