CONSERVATIVE councillors have quietly arranged for West Oxfordshire District Council to leave Oxfordshire and merge with Cotswold District Council and be based in Cirencester.

Leaving Oxfordshire means we will no longer be the responsibility of Oxfordshire’s health system. Why turn our backs on internationally recognised hospitals. Will we travel to Cheltenham General in future?

For such fundamental local authority reorganisation WODC could have notified their plans to us with our council tax bills. Nor has our local Conservative councillor candidate clearly stated the proposed merger in her election leaflet.

If each resident is not properly informed about the merger at election time, where is democratic accountability? When was the public debate on this merger’s consequences?

Oxford and Oxfordshire have always provided our health care, education, employment and so on. That is the natural direction if unitary authority is required, but not as a part of a Cotswold District Unitary Authority in Gloucestershire.

D BLAKELEY
Manor Road
Witney