Authority denies minor road was resurfaced for Shropshire councillor

The lane leading to Councillor Vince Hunt’s home in Trefonen, near Oswestry, was re-laid just before Christmas last year.

The move came under criticism from members of the public, who said that other busier roads should have been prioritised.

But the council said road maintenance is based on need and not by councillor’s demands.

Interactive map shows where the road is:

Councillor Joyce Barrow, a fellow Conservative councillor and Trefonen resident, had written an e-mail to the council’s highways departments entitled “Vince Hunt’s Road!” asking when the work “he was promised” would be done.

But Shropshire Council has now issued a statement, saying: “Highways maintenance in Shropshire is prioritised on the basis of need, not by councillors demanding specific work to be done.

“This is what happened in this instance, and it is unfortunate that these unfounded allegations have been made towards councillors who work hard to represent their communities.”

It comes as Green Party Councillor Julian Dean called the issue “truly shocking”.

He said: “The fact that one councillor would head an email ‘Vince Hunt’s Road!” is truly shocking in its assumption of privilege.

“It seems this was not a site of community concern – and even these have been frozen. So how did this get agreed?”

The clerk of Oswestry Rural Parish Council also said she was unaware the work was a priority.

Sharon Clayton said: “As far as I am aware the condition of the lane has not been designated by the parish council as a concern for the community.

“As far as I am aware no representation by the parish council has been made to Shropshire Council to resurface the lane.

“As far as I am aware there has been no communication concerning resurfacing of the lane between Shropshire Council and the parish council nor any other individuals.

“I have not written correspondence that relates to the resurfacing of the lane.”