Judging from local newspaper reports and local media coverage, the Lib-Dems have never been under such fire as at the present time.
When they resoundingly won the last election, most people, including myself, welcomed them as the new kids on the block who were going to get something positive done about the way the town is run. I even did a media bit with them: 'The future is Orange'.
Alas, the honeymoon didn't last. Instead of getting down to brass tacks they prevaricated, sat on the fence, leaned whichever way the wind was blowing, and even brought in expensive consultants to take the blame for them, something they said they would never do before the elections. Then when they eventually made decisions they were the wrong ones, apart from opening the public toilets again as things were getting a bit sticky in places.
To make matters worse, they gave us the reasons in Newspeak, which means they use nice-sounding phrases to conceal something which is the opposite of what they are telling you. Breaking up and cutting down the size of the market, for instance, is disguised as 'Improvements' to the Market Square. Getting rid of the Market is spoken of as 'Freeing the Market Square', and so on and so forth.
Cllr Church, for another example, told us at our last AGM that: "The Market is paramount" which now appears to mean making it smaller and enlarging his 'Events Area'. What a slimy bunch they have proven themselves to be. Frankly, I'm very disappointed with them.
I'm sure they're not all bad. Those at the top are the very worst, and like a septic tank, it probably gets better as you go further down. Those well-paid Cabinet members seem to have floated up together, and make all the wrong decisions in relative secrecy. This only strengthens my view that using a Cabinet is bad policy. A handful of cabinet members can make decisions which might be harshly questioned in open council, and voted out.
Unless they come to their senses very quickly and change the leadership and policy of their party in this town, the days of the Liberal-Democrats in Northampton are numbered. Nobody will be voting for them at the next elections, either local or parliamentary.
If the Liberal-Democrats go down in local history as the political party which destroyed an 800-year old market, where many local people shop, including a large diversity of ethnic groups, then their infamy will live forever.
