Local Liberal Democrats have issued a statement headed: 'Not Fit To Represent You - Clare Berry' regarding the Hatfield Conservative County Councillor's contrary stance about the move of a special needs school next to the proposed site of the hated Incinerator; which has recently received over 6,000 signatures of protest against its installation. The LibDem statement is provided below, in full.

NOT FIT TO REPRESENT YOU: CLARE BERRY Herts Tories and the Council Planning Department were in utter confusion following the farce over Southfields school last week.

At the start of the Development Control meeting to consider allowing the school to be moved to allow the incinerator to be built at New Barnfield, local LibDem councillor Chris Brazier (the Colneys) moved it be delayed until the siting of the incinerator was decided. The Tories threw this out and voted through the £5.9m move, branded ‘poor value for money’ by the council’s own officers.

Hatfield county and borough councillor Clare Berry then had a speech read for her in which she supported uprooting the school. After the vote, it became clear the government had ordered the county council not to decide to move the school, probably for exactly the reasons that the LibDems had put forward.

Paul Zukowskyj, who was LibDem candidate for Welwyn Hatfield at the last general election, was present at the meeting and said afterwards ‘Not only is it clear the LibDem advice, given free of charge, should have been taken, but we have the farce of a leading Hatfield Tory councillor flying in the face of the 6,000 plus people who have opposed the incinerator and moving the school.

‘I really do think it is time for the Tories to deselect Cllr Berry and let someone more in touch with Hatfield opinion, of whatever party, take over. The people of Hatfield need someone who will represent their interests, not someone who will ignore them and do whatever she likes. Even the leader of the council, Tory Cllr Robert Gordon, recently said sometimes councillors need to represent their constituents views rather than their own, clearly Cllr Berry doesn’t agree.’