Now the majority view is that the LGA, like the London Council Associations, is useless. However to one person it is not so useless. Who can that be? Why, none other than Sir Cockle. For until he was booted off the LCA he was adding to his Leader's allowance of £70,000 pa with the £22,000 pa he grabbed from the LCA, topped up by the £15,000 a year he stuck in his back pocket from the Audit Commission.
Having lost these last two sinecures he was back down to £70,000-not enough to pay the school fees.Something had to be done.... When the chance to become chair of the LGA came along Sir Cockle was hot to trot.
Sir Cockle give his reason for standing: The Dame gives hers.
Cllr Sir Merrick Cockell explains why he is standing for Chairman of the Local Government Association
"I’m standing for LGA Chairman because it’s time for a fresh start with an invigorated leadership of the Association and its Conservative Group."
Perhaps he would be more honest and accurate if he said the below....
"I'm standing for the LGA because I have suffered a severe income drop and as my 2 man band fag trading company didn't trade I have no other means of support. The close to £56,000 I will pick up from the LGA added to the £70,000 I get from the Rotten Borough will more than keep food on the table."
If you have a view on Sir Cockle's bid why don't you do what the Dame did and tell Conservative Home readers what you think. You can do it anonymously if you dont want to be unmasked!
Conservative Home has been nobbled by Cockell. The blog is editing out any adverse comment about our boy in Hornton Street. Maybe its the Masons doing each other a favour.
ReplyDeleteOdd the behaiour on Conservative Home. Another prominent carpet bagger, Lord Hanningfield the ex Leader of Essex council, ran a whole series of articles on Conservative Home and was stoutly defended by the Editor when readers objected. After he had been arrested over expenses abuse, the Conservative Home editor, Tim Montgommery trumpted time and again "a man is innocent until proved guilty". Would have been prudent not to give the man airtime until the little bother was cleared up.
Could it be another Mason coven?
It is a scandal that this man charges around attempting to double and triple dip from the public purse.
ReplyDeleteHis determination to extract money from public office is extraordinary. He clearly has an income threshold of plus £110k that he needs and an extra £60k from the LGA to add to his £70k from K&C must seem too good a chance to miss.
But can his fellow councillors at the LGA really be thinking of appointing Cockell to be Chairman? High time that quango was abolished