Councillor threatens to burn cabinet members at the stake over road repairs

Speaking at a North Horsham Parish Council meeting last night (Thursday September 12), Jim Rae, both a district and county councillor, gave members an update on Lambs Farm Road, which is scheduled to be repaired in the next working year after a long running battle with West Sussex County Council.

However Mr Rae suggested he had received promises the work would be brought forward, and some councillors questioned whether works would even happen next year.

Mr Rae said: “I will burn him [Pieter Montyn], Michael Brown, and the leader at the stake if they even think about moving it from 2014/15.”

Mr Montyn is WSCC’s cabinet member for highways and transport, while Mr Brown is cabinet member for finance.

Referring to Mr Montyn, Mr Rae added: “All I can do is moan, threaten and keep working on him.”

If there was a bad winter he would be ‘all over him like a rash’ and said he felt ‘let down’ by the situation.

Addressing Ray Turner, chairman of the planning committee, parish councillor Mike Brakes said: “Could I just say, Ray, as far as I’m aware talking to neighbours the main concern is really with a lack of openness, because they have tried the website and tried to report it and written to the highways authority.

“They have never mentioned it’s the worst road in Horsham. The thing is it’s a waste of public money to keep botching it with temporary repairs.”

Mr Turner added: “It’s like a roller coaster.”

Mr Rae said in the professional opinion of the highways department Lambs Farm Road was not ‘the worst road in the county’, although he said he had not seen any worse in his travels to Chichester.

Beech Road, Church Road, and Hawkesbourne Road were also mentioned as being in a state of disrepair.