Truth matters in politics

IT IS no wonder that many people have become disillusioned with politics. Polarised parties, constant arguing, cynical attempts to mislead voters on social media. This is happening nationally and unfortunately some of the same traits can be seen in our local Borough politics. So should we just give in to cynicism and think politicians are all the same and that our vote won’t make any difference? Definitely not, but it is time for a better type of politics. Locally, The Alliance is completely free of national party influence and our councillors and candidates are there purely to represent the interests of residents. And we happen to believe that our local representatives should always be truthful. We owe that to residents.

Tunbridge Wells Town Hall was the idea of the Borough Partnership. It clearly wasn’t as it was a joint project between KCC and TWBC back in 2018 when the council was under Conservative control. So why attempt to mislead residents in this way?

Then we have the case of the disappearing deficit of £944,000 in TWBC’s budget for this financial year. Constant denials that there is any deficit from a variety of Conservative past and present councillors. Which is very strange as they appear to have forgotten that they drew up the budget complete with deficit (to be funded from TWBC reserves) and approved it back in February 2022. Indeed the auditors only gave a clean bill of health on the understanding that action would be taken to balance the budget in future years.

Unfortunately, not all parties appear to share this ethos. Sometimes outright lies are told, such as the recent claim by an ex-councillor that the imperfect ‘Public Realm’ scheme outside

Consultation

Misleading stories have popped up on social media regarding the sale of TWBC assets. All councillors are well aware of the true situation regarding our car parks in Tunbridge Wells, i.e. that there is going to be a parking strategy to assess need and then consultation with residents before any decisions are made. That has not stopped some from cynically misrepresenting the situation and causing unnecessary alarm to residents – all in a desperate attempt to get votes. Even more disturbingly, some have resorted to creating a fake Tunbridge Wells ‘Community’ Group on Facebook which does not make its political allegiance clear and bars any dissenting voices. So much for debate and free speech.

The Alliance pledges that we will never make false claims in our election literature or on social

Sustainable economic growth, environmentally friendly development, decarbonised transport and cleaner air should all should be delivered locally. But the reality is that it will be near impossible to deliver this vital agenda without proper funding.

Austerity

A decade of Cameron/Clegg imposed austerity has resulted in slashed local government budgets, swingeing public service cuts, and failure to deliver sustainable economic growth both nationally or locally. We have had a ‘lost decade’ and we can expect to lose more years as the brutal impacts of austerity continue.

Local authorities are having to make even harder choices. It is not by wish or design that Conservative Kent County Council is having to cut public services like Children’s Centres and vital bus services, and failing to repair our potholed roads. It is quite literally because they are broke. The Conservative Government is failing to deliver green policies nationally. By starving local government of funding, it is also hampering local efforts to deliver the green agenda demanded by residents. This situation will continue until we have a change in government – to one truly committed to dealing with the existential threat that is the Climate and Biodiversity Emergency we are now facing.

media. We won’t promise to deliver things outside the scope of the Borough Council; we will support good ideas wherever they originate; we will work collaboratively with any parties that put the interests of residents first; we won’t claim credit for other people’s work.

Time for a better type of local politics that puts the people who matter first – our residents. Please get in touch if you feel the same way. david@twalliance.com