Adderbury Parish Council (APC) can be criticised for many things but it is not entirely at fault for failing to meet the needs of West Addebury residents.  Some people argue that we have had plenty of representation on APC so have no right to complain.  Some people argue that we should put more candidates forward for APC if we are unhappy with the way we are treated.

Both these arguments miss the point.  Parish councillors are not elected to represent their part of the parish, their village or their street.  They are supposed to represent the whole parish and all residents.

It would be undemocratic for West Adderbury residents to try to take over the parish council and force its minority views on East Adderbury and Twyford.

The fact that West Adderbury has been so well represented on the Parish Council and yet its needs and interests are still not being met shows the problem is not one of representation. 

The real problem is that West Adderbury has its own identity, its own needs and interests, and a very different vision of its future than the rest of the parish. APC cannot meet our needs without denying those of the majority in East Adderbury and Twyford.

It is impossible for a single parish council to meet incompatible needs and unfair to expect it to do so.  This is the root cause of the divisions on the Parish Council which have spilled over into the community.  For a thousand years, the villages of East Addberbury and West Adderbury were allowed to govern themselves and worked together in harmony.  It is not only fair and democratic for West Adderbury to have its Parish Council back, it is the only way to bring peace to the larger community.

Opponents of West Adderbury Parish Council should ask themselves why they would deny their neighbours the same rights they enjoy themselves: the right to decide how they should be governed; the right to decide their own futures; the right to have their needs met.

Time for a change, time to bring back West Adderbury Parish Council.