A leading Bracknell Labour Councillor has said 'the atmosphere' at the Town Council has changed due to Conservative political infighting.

Cllr Mary Temperton from the Bracknell Labour party has spoken out after Cllr Malcolm Tullett was readmitted to the Bracknell Town Conservatives.

Cllr Tullett, who represents Old Bracknell, initially had his membership of the Bracknell Town Council Conservative group ‘voided’ after he resigned from the Bracknell Forest Conservative group.

However, he was readmitted to the Town Conservatives on appeal.

Now, Cllr Mary Temperton from the Bracknell Labour party has reacted to Cllr Tullet’s re-admission, and accused the Conservatives of politicising the Town Council.

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Cllr Temperton, who represents Great Hollands North, said:  “You would have noticed that Councillor Malcolm Tullett is back as a ‘Conservative’ on the Bracknell Town Council website, rather than ‘other’.

“This vindicates all the Labour group said about the Conservative councillors on Bracknell Town Council, a completely autonomous council with its own elections, being controlled and managed by leaders of the Bracknell Forest Council.

“The mayor, supposedly a non partisan role, moved to vote out Malcolm Tullett from his chairmanship of a working group.

“Malcolm Tullett has a lot of knowledge and relevant experience and is an effective chairman. He opened up the working group to interested residents-a welcome move.

“Removing him had nothing to do with serving the interests of the residents but all to do with the internal wrangling of the Conservatives on the Bracknell Forest Council.

“The Bracknell Town Council has never before been  run so overtly on party political Interests. This new development is changing the atmosphere and working relationships and is very regrettable.

“How and why this U-turn was achieved, I hope this is the end of the matter and the autonomy of Bracknell Town Council is maintained and confidence rebuilt. The residents of Bracknell Town deserve nothing less.”

An attempt was made by some of the Bracknell Conservatives on the Town Council to oust Cllr Tullett from his position as chairman of the environmental services committee  and the Mill Park Working Group.

But the bid to replace him failed when fellow Conservatives James Alexander (Great Hollands South) and Stuart Foston (Old Bracknell) voted in his favour.

Speaking about the move, Cllr Temperton added: “It represented a real change in the atmosphere. The atmosphere at Bracknell Forest Council has been tense for quite a while, but the town council has always been separate and above party politics.

“This [the political maneuvers] has made party politics come to the fore, and it’s such a shame because the atmosphere on the council has changed.”

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Cllr Tullett sits on both Bracknell Town and Bracknell Forest Council.

He resigned from the Bracknell Forest Conservative group in July because he felt he could not ‘properly represent’ residents while sitting for the party.

Following his resignation, he was booted from almost all of his assignments on Bracknell Forest Council, and now sits as an ‘Independent Conservative’.

Cllr Tullett remains the chair of the Mill Pond working group at the town council, and has retained his positions on the Governance and Audit Committee and the Licensing and Safety Committee at Bracknell Forest Council.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service has attempted to get responses on the subject from Cllr Chris Turrell, Bracknell Town Council leader (Conservative, Harmans Water) and the town mayor Sanjeev Prasad (Conservative, Bullbrook).