Wokingham Tories attack Lib-Dems for calling for resignation of Executive Member for Council Budgets

12.00.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Fri 15th May 2009

At a stormy meeting of Wokingham Borough Council at the Shute End council offices last night, Tory councillors mounted a series of attacks on the leader of the opposition, Councillor Prue Bray (Leader of the Lib Dem group and councillor for Winnersh ward) for suggesting that Conservative councillor, Anthony Pollock, should resign from the Tory Executive for his incompetence on the council's investment of £5 million in Icelandic banks.

Speaking after the meeting, Councillor Bray said, "I was surprised that the Conservatives spent so much time attacking me and expressed no regret or responsibility at all for putting this large sum of taxpayers' money at risk.

"The report on the Icelandic Banks investments shows clearly that Anthony Pollock presided over a culture in which rate of return was more important than security, he appeared to know nothing about the wider financial picture in the country, and he didn't even ask any questions about what was going on. The report which says all this was produced and approved unanimously by the Conservative dominated Overview & Scrutiny process.

"Anthony Pollock should accept responsibility for his poor performance and resign from the Tory Executive. I am disappointed that the Conservatives attacked me instead of acknowledging that they got it wrong. Conservative councillors are clearly more interested in looking after the interests of one of their own than in looking after council taxpayers' money."