| Topic: | Re:Re:Community group at odds with coalition | |
| Posted by: | John Connelly | |
| Date/Time: | 26/11/09 12:48:00 |
| My interpretation of the situation is that the Tories are positioning themselves as the ruling group on the council, hoping that they might campaign next May on the basis of "the record of Hounslow's Conservatives". The first straw in the wind appeared last May after Andrew Morgan-Watts (senior) defected to the Tories. They then ditched their alliance with Peter Hills and Linda Nakamura, relying on a combined Tory/ICG coalition of 30 out of 60 backed up by the Mayor's casting vote if needed. They are gambling that the ICG will not withdraw from the coalition and are aware that no other ruling coalition is a realistic possibility. For the ICG's part, they have a flexibility in terms of the budget that was missing up to now. They could negotiate a compromise with the Tories. An alternative, however, could be to seek cross party agreement on a budget that removes the disgusting service cuts package put forward by the Tories, whose sole interest seems to be in avoiding tax rises regardless of who suffers. The latter option could mean that neither Tories nor Labour would be able to claim sole credit for the budget in an election year, an outcome that would benefit all those who believe that a Tory majority next May would be disastrous for the majority of Hounslow residents. Note that I discount any possibility of a Labour majority, in line with most Labour Party members. |