A scathing attack has been launched by Canvey Tory Councillor Jeff Stanley on Castle Point Council's "frankly ludicrous" spending policies as election campaigning got under way.

However, Canvey Labour councillor Jackie Reilly rubbished his opinion and said the council's record "speaks for itself."

Mr Stanley said: "The budget that has been forced through by the Labour administration exposes spending priorities that are frankly ludicrous.

"Most residents responding to our surveys agree that the main job of the council is to sweep the streets and collect the rubbish, but less than a fifth of the Labour budget is being spent on these key areas."

However, Mrs Reilly said: "The litter hotline has been so successful that a Tory candidate at the last Tarpots Area Forum admitted that the improvements have been visible since its introduction.

"Our performance on recycling and rubbish collection is in the top 25 per cent of the entire country. I think our record speaks for itself."

Published Friday, April 11, 2003

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