David Boxall, of Manor Road, Abbotskerswell, writes:

Mr Hellier Laing appears to have missed the point of my letter. Nowhere is there any reference to a particular party. Also, where local government is concerned, I have no leaning to any political party. In an earlier letter I indicated that I had been a district councillor for the Newton Abbot Rural District Council. Then there were no political allegiances, nor were we paid. We gave our time driven by a social conscience and as independent thinkers, which I still remain.

My comments are made from actual observations of council committee meetings. In the past, as councillors, you voted according to your own feelings and views on the matter being debated. Too often now do we see the herd instinct being followed or pressure being applied to follow the party line, rather than use their own minds to decide on important matters? This can also be seen in national politics.

Mr Hellier Laing refers to consultation for the previous LDF. He should be aware that it is the officers who control these matters, not the elected members. He also may not be aware of the problems prior to this last consultation, in that the majority of the elected members had very little knowledge of what was being proposed by the officers prior to the committee meetings in October 2011, that rubber-stamped the consultation document. As for decisions by full council, the party that controls the executive committee also controls this. Hence the concerns I have been expressing about the actual democratic input into major planning issues.

The interest aroused by the current Core Strategy consultation was largely because of opposition to what was being proposed, not because of input by Teignbridge.THIS AND OTHER LETTERS IN OUR DIGITAL EDITION