We Will Deliver - letter to Oxford Mail

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Fri 28th Jul 2006

Your local government reporter must have become over-excited after the declaration of the result in the city council by-election in Hinksey Park last Thursday. Let's see what happened.

In May Labour held the seat. In June the Labour councillor resigned causing the by-election. In July Labour held the seat. Hardly a sequence of events deserving your reporter's description of "Labour's election glory".

As for the Liberal Democrats, we were the only party to increase their votes and their proportion of the votes in comparison with the May result in this ward. Hardly deserving your reporter's description of "another hammer blow".

As for the position on the whole council, what all groups have to remember is that after a generation of Labour's mismanagement Oxford City Council is a "weak" council, improving only "gradually" and failing to deliver value for money to its citizens. That is why in the elections of May 2004 and again in May 2006 Liberal Democrats were given more votes than Labour. That is why in May 2006 Labour decided to be in opposition and the full council elected a minority Liberal Democrat Administration for the municipal year to turn the council round.

In the two months since Lib Dems formed the Administration we have improved Labour's proposed new recycling scheme, speeded up the collection of cardboard and green waste across the city, and reassured people that they will not be required to have wheelie bins if they do not need them or cannot cope with them. In the next few months the Lib Dems will deliver our 5 election pledges. We are already showing that we are running the council effectively. This is what the city needs: a change of direction and an effective council that listens to people. This is what we shall deliver.

John Goddard

Leader

Oxford City Council