Was it Abuse of Town Hall Facilities?

1.11.00pm GMT Wed 20th Jan 2010

Lib Dem activists campaigning in the snow but their local party would be charged to use Town Hall meeting rooms

Whilst all other political parties were not allowed to use the Town Hall for their meetings, it seems that the Residents' Association supremos were exempt from the policy.

Residents Associations of Epsom & Ewell has been a registered political party for some years, but when their senior non-councillor members used Town Hall meeting rooms, they did so free of charge.

A report on the matter is being discussed by the Strategy & Resources Committee on 26th January, but the judgement as to whether the charges should be backdated has been left to Residents Association councillors themselves because they hold the majority of votes on the S & R Committee.

"This is clearly ridiculous" says Cllr Julie Morris, Lib Dem council group leader. "Our local party has never been able to use Town Hall facilities free of charge and neither has any other local branch of a national political party. What's more, the decision as to whether or not these meetings should be retrospectively charged for is being left to the party itself. No guesses on which way the decision will go then!"

The committee report argues that other organisations could be subjected to retrospective charging if the Standing Committee of Residents Associations (SCoRA) is ordered to pay up. Cllr Morris adds "This is not about other local groups. It's about abusing a policy for political gain : charging room hire for local political parties who are not in power or are in opposition, but letting SCoRA meet free of charge."