Hot TOPICS 
Fat Cat councillors reject town hall bid at area board
(March 10, 2011)TWO Fat Cat councillors appear to stand in the way of Warminster people
rescuing the town hall from oblivion despite an impassioned plea from a
member of their own political party.
Cabinet members Keith Humphries (Warminster Broadway) and Fleur de Rhe Philipe (Warminster Without) - who both rake in about £30,000 a year from their county council roles - couldn't bring themselves to say one good thing about the efforts being made by local people to save the building from decay.
Town councillor Chris March, said: ''Somebody has got to take responsibility for this building, we can't just leave it - it detracts from the whole of the town.
''People come here and think 'if they can't look after this historic grade II listed building then they can't look after other things as well.
''I know we have a mountain to climb.''
But negative Miss Philipe, who now runs the county finances after lumbering us with the awful mess in in the town centre when she was highways chief, was only interested in dragging up the past and playing the blame game.
She said it was the district not the county that sold off the building in the 70s.
Warminster town councillor Keith Humphries said absolutely nothing even though this matter is a number one priority for many in the town.
Okay for you Keith - you'll still be raking in the cash even if the building falls down.
Officials had already briefed councillors that the application was premature because the trust did not own the building, but it was left to independent councillor Chris Newbury (who is really a Westbury person) to say anything positive or constructive from the board.
In moving refusal of the £5,000 application he added a rider that 'in due course we want to look at this again'.
''I hope it does come back and wish them luck in getting hold of this building,'' he said, but also appealed for greater clarity from the figures supplied from the trust.
Steve Dancey, who sat on the county council a long time before Humphries or Philipe said: ''This pair really need a wake-up call. I know the are a bit out of touch with ordinary people but for goodness sake they are elected to do their best for the people of the town and county.
''I really don't understand them - and I know a fair few Tory MPs who wouldn't either.''
Cabinet members Keith Humphries (Warminster Broadway) and Fleur de Rhe Philipe (Warminster Without) - who both rake in about £30,000 a year from their county council roles - couldn't bring themselves to say one good thing about the efforts being made by local people to save the building from decay.
Town councillor Chris March, said: ''Somebody has got to take responsibility for this building, we can't just leave it - it detracts from the whole of the town.
''People come here and think 'if they can't look after this historic grade II listed building then they can't look after other things as well.
''I know we have a mountain to climb.''
But negative Miss Philipe, who now runs the county finances after lumbering us with the awful mess in in the town centre when she was highways chief, was only interested in dragging up the past and playing the blame game.
She said it was the district not the county that sold off the building in the 70s.
Warminster town councillor Keith Humphries said absolutely nothing even though this matter is a number one priority for many in the town.
Okay for you Keith - you'll still be raking in the cash even if the building falls down.
Officials had already briefed councillors that the application was premature because the trust did not own the building, but it was left to independent councillor Chris Newbury (who is really a Westbury person) to say anything positive or constructive from the board.
In moving refusal of the £5,000 application he added a rider that 'in due course we want to look at this again'.
''I hope it does come back and wish them luck in getting hold of this building,'' he said, but also appealed for greater clarity from the figures supplied from the trust.
Steve Dancey, who sat on the county council a long time before Humphries or Philipe said: ''This pair really need a wake-up call. I know the are a bit out of touch with ordinary people but for goodness sake they are elected to do their best for the people of the town and county.
''I really don't understand them - and I know a fair few Tory MPs who wouldn't either.''
The huge dismissive atmosphere of those at both town council and county council level brought another reaction tonight.
"The
very strong feeling that I get around the town is that brickbats rhymes
with what people are saying about four of our five area board members,"
says Paul Macdonald.
"Warminster
is now once again Cinderella and amongst the public it is now being
remarked that this area is the stingiest in the county."