I was only present for the last of the planning applications. Cllr Blair is I think the only member of the North Area committee on the council’s main planning committee, and so she was looked to by the other councillors to turn their comments into reasons which could be justified in terms of the local plan.

At all area committees there are often councillors who’ve not prepared prior to considering planning applications. There are often councillors looking at plans for the first time at the meetings (I think that more plans could be included, at least in the online version of the committee papers, and support Cllr Nimmo-Smith’s suggestion that artist’s impressions ought be provided). Cllr Blair and other members of the planning committee go into the council planning office more regularly and have typically looked at the plans. They are also more aware of common problems, eg. the council’s own standards on cycle parking.

What I conclude from this is not that Cllr Blair is any good; but that given the current councillors, the Liberal Democrat’s localism - deciding planning applications at area committees is not really working.

The “One Woman Campaign” comes from my observing the the central scrutiny committees where Cllr Blair has wasted opportunities to scrutinise what went wrong at Arbury Park and has instead made speeches on focusing on the name. The North Area committee was not the first time she has complained about people using the name “Arbury Park”.

I’ve got no bias against the East Chesterton Councillors. I’m commenting on their performance, in public. I chose to ask two questions relating to East Chesterton (The other one - on Penny Ferry - I will report on later). I think it is important to point out that Cllr Blair chatted through the initial parts of the discussion on speeding on Water Street / Fen Road - I thought this was shocking - and so reported on it.

If I were to assess my own performance, for example, against that of Cllr Blair, then I was less well prepared than her on the planning applications (she, as always, had the local plan to hand).

Sorry, Richard, but this looks rather selective reporting, and I’m not sure where the “one woman campaign” claim can be justified from.