The Independent Party - is the writing on the wall

It is interesting to see that Alex Kaye has given up on the Independent Party having had the benefit of seeing them close up. As I have mentioned many times before there is nothing wrong with the concept of an Independent Councillor or a 1 issue candidate but the problem comes when a group of disparate individuals without common beliefs or aspirations pretend that they represent an alternative administration and start to act as a party grouping. They have a Leader who draws a leaders allowance, vote together as regularly as any other party group, hold group meetings and issue common party literature. They get the hump if any true independent candidate stands diverting votes from what they regard as the "official independent". We also now know that they even impose a group whip as was confirmed by their leader Martin Terry who was forced to follow the group line at a recent scrutiny meeting even though it was against his own belief. However what do they collectively stand for? The answer is nothing much - but that is surprising when you look at their political roots ranging from monetarist right wingers to failed Labour candidates with most others in between. At least with a Conservative, Lib Dem or Socialist there is an immediate understanding of their core priorities and beliefs. This group represent a real risk to the future of the town because if they do get a share of power in the future who knows how they will exercise it or how they will manage consistency on any major issue.Alex has seen the danger - let's hope that the voters hear her message.