17/10/10….’Focus on the issues’ says town councillor

Dear Editor, In response to Jill Swanson?s letter yesterday ? yes, of course I and the Town Council are concerned that the consultation period is woefully
inadequate. Unfortunately the limited window of opportunity and early deadline have been imposed by SODC, not by Thame Town Council.

I also recognise that people feel that they have not been kept informed of recent developments, but the Town Council have been in exactly the same position. It is only in the last couple of weeks that the reduced numbers have been known, opening up the opportunity to reconsider an alternative site, and those couple of weeks have been filled with hastily arranged meetings whilst simultaneously working to launch the best consultation process that we can achieve within the time available. Far from keeping
people in the dark, we are actively trying to engage them in the debate.

Town Councillors would welcome, and have been actively lobbying for, an extension to the deadline but without any success to date. Given the limited amount of time that is available, surely it would be better to focus on the issues rather than tilting at windmills.

In some of the recent correspondence and forums I sense an underlying but growing conspiracy theory ? unreasonable, unjustified, unwelcome, and unhelpful ? that it is Thame Town Council who are culpable in setting the short deadline, making decisions behind closed doors and, by inference, acting against the best interests of the community. May I remind everyone
that Town Councillors are all local residents ourselves, elected by the community to represent the interests of the community, and that we work
tirelessly in this endeavour. There are no party politics at play, no predetermination, no vested interests, no hidden agendas ? just the desire
to consider the options and arrive at the right outcome for Thame. We may be the nearest and most obvious target for dissent but why the instinct to turn against the very people who are trying, against the odds, to do the right thing ?

I hope that the whole community will use the limited amount of time available to concentrate on the real issue, engage with the debate, and ensure that we reach an outcome which preserves the character and heritage of Thame.

Yours Faithfully
Mike Dyer