“Disgusted” councillor threatens to quit “broken” Town Council over charity fiasco
Cllr Nick Howells first shared the proposal last year for Welsh Bikers for Suicide Prevention to use the town’s dilapidated Motte and Bailey site, opposite Tesco, for a hub that would help them tackle mental health issues.
The newly formed charity said it was willing to return the site to its former state as well as pay a monthly rent, a seemingly win-win situation for the Town Council who face a massive bill to carry out work there before it is handed back to owners Powis Estates in the future.
But the charity’s founder, Jeff Green, went public Friday night to say that there had been little progress with the Town Council after six months and, instead, they had been welcomed with open arms to Newtown, where the charity has hired a new base.
Some councillors on Welshpool Town Council were reluctant to accept the offer without more information on the charity, and its co-founder, with them claiming that both had connections to the far right.
Those concerns were addressed by Mr Green in an impressive presentation to council last November, but, nevertheless and despite the Town Council’s terrible financial situation, little progress had been made since.
Cllr Howells, a former Mayor who was also fuming last week to learn that the promised skatepark had been mothballed in favour of a potential paid car park on the site, said he was “disgusted and appalled”.
He told us: “I was 100% behind the charity on this. I was disgusted and appalled that certain councillors actually slandered Jeff Green when he was invited to present his ambitions to full Council.
“After his professional and articulate presentation, he was accused, in chamber, of being homophobic, racist, and a far-right wing neo Nazi with absolutely no substantiated evidence.
“A protest was arranged outside the Town Hall on the night of his presentation. Someone talked about the holocaust and death camps related to the biker club’s colours. No mention was made of the fact that a huge number of these guys are military veterans and also wear their medal ribbons on their colours.
“These guys have sworn allegiance to our country and our monarch, they have fought in theatres of conflict, many coming home with PTSD.
“The charity has been formed to try and reduce mental health issues and to prevent suicide. How can this be a bad thing?
“I will be talking about this in the Services and Properties Committee meeting next Wednesday. I did not realise that the situation had gone public at this stage.
“After the extreme political leanings and personal prejudices displayed by certain councillors, I am heartbroken. (I am) Searching at the moment whether I want to continue within this broken Council.”
These are challenging times for Welshpool Town Council which is having to rejuggle its priorities after a survey on its properties revealed that millions need to be spent on place like the Town Hall.
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