WHAT an excellent, probing interview by your journalist, Freddie Whittaker, of the Local Government Minister, Eric Pickles (pictured).

From the answers the minister gave in the recorded interview, it seems that he simply doesn’t have any idea of Oxfordshire county’s finances. He thinks they spend over a billion more than they do and that the Government give much more than they do. These were not minor miscalculations, he was out by hundreds of millions of pounds.

At the last full council meeting I that a cross party delegation go to London to meet with Mr Pickles directly and challenge the figures on which he was making a judgement as to how much rates support grant Oxfordshire should get. I was convinced he had made a mistake – the famous Whittaker interview proved I was right.

Unfortunately Labour and the Conservative councillors voted down my suggestion. We had to wait until he came to Oxford to speak at the Oxford Union before all was revealed.

I have known Eric Pickles for 20 years and his stock in trade is getting it wrong especially on facts and figures. The tragedy is that his mistakes will impact on thousands of vulnerable people in Oxfordshire, especially children and the elderly, where the cuts are the most severe.

I will continue to urge the Labour Party and the Conservatives on the county council not to roll over and be kicked in the teeth by the Government but put it directly to them, not only that they have their figures wrong but that these cuts are malicious and unnecessary.

DAVID WILLIAMS (County Councillor) Leader of the Green party Group on Oxfordshire County Council