Local politicians neutered

Mr Bailey, Starmail, April 30, wonders if regular writers were standing for election. Well, some of us have served in the past.

There's a lot to be said, though, for being a gadfly - one is able to administer one's pricks as appropriate, not forgetting to point the finger at those who claim a lot of allowances.

There is also the problem of the Standards Board, which decrees that those councillors who declare an opinion are unable to vote on related matters.

You couldn't make that up, Mr Bailey - if you vote for me because I promise, say, to fight against your hospital's closure, Prescott's Standards Board says I'm not allowed to take part in discussions about the closure nor vote. What's the point of being a councillor under those conditions?

No, far better to write letters and try to get the underlying politics sorted out - and that's difficult given that the three main parties might as well be one, despite everything they profess to the contrary. Until we leave the EU all our governing will be done by the EU - it already makes some 70 per cent of our laws.

Better to be a gadfly than a rubber-stamper - and that's all they are.

A J Astley, St Martins