I READ the article (July 2, Your Parish Needs You) with interest.

I am the acting temporary parish clerk to Gosford and Water Eaton and I was the parish clerk in the early 1980s.

Over the years I have witnessed the increased amount of bureaucracy being implemented by different elected governments (even this present one).

This bureaucracy directly affects councillors and indirectly the parish clerks who administer it.

It seems to be that at any time there is a scandal by MPs over self-interests, expenses etc, where assurances are then given by the government of the time that they will address the problem, it seems they start at the bottom tier, which is the parish council and inflict more legislation on them through Acts of Parliament and regulations.

There are codes of conduct, declarations of interests, administering employment and health and safety legislation to the extreme, data protection, disclosure of information, standing orders, accountability to the extreme, internal control systems, proper practices, exercising electoral rights, financial and risk assessments, employment legislation as employers and HMRC PAYE and real time tax declarations (weekly or monthly), electronic financial and transmission regulations.

This list is not fully conclusive and some items involve councillors having to fill in forms about their personal details.

As you can see, it is no wonder that many people may not want to come forward to serve their local community as councillors, or even to be employed as parish clerks when they have to put up with so much government control and intervention.

CARL SMITH, Acting Temporary Clerk, Cromwell Way, Gosford

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