COUNCILLOR Waterhouse, in presenting his argument for an elected mayor, alleges that the information given by officers to councillors 'is often incomplete and sometimes misleading'.
Can Cllr Waterhouse substantiate this quite serious allegation and, if so, one has to ask why no action has been taken against officers for, at best, their incompetence or, at worst, their wilful misconduct?
If Cllr Waterhouse cannot or will not substantiate his allegation then he has cast an unwarranted slur on what, I am sure, are hard working and conscientious officers who are in no position to respond.
In that case an apology would seem to be in order.
Cllr Waterhouse goes on to state categorically that the officers, not the councillors, are running the council.
Surely the basic role of officers is to advise and inform councillors and then execute the resultant policy as decided by the councillors.
If that is not what is happening then the only people to blame are the councillors themselves, including Cllr Waterhouse, for not holding the officers to account. If experienced councillors cannot control their officers I do not see what difference having an elected mayor, who may have no experience at all of local government, will make.
I will not comment on Cllr Waterhouse's apparent, but misleading, belief that Tavistock and Okehampton are 30 miles apart but I do congratulate him on identifying correctly the road linking them as the A386.
Charles Letchford
Vicarage Road
Okehampton