DEAR EDITOR - The article entitled "Bid to oust Tory fails" from the Advertiser/Messenger of July 3, once again demonstrates how petty, party political point-scoring comes before the interests of public service and in this case, before the interests of Bromsgrove in particular.

The hidden agenda pursued by Councillor Peter Mc Donald in wanting Mr Allard's removal from the Special Standards Committee has successfully got everyone debating what Mr. Allard did not say or disclose instead of debating how Mr Allard's previous public service experience would be beneficial to the people of Bromsgrove.

If the requirement to reveal political party affiliation is that important then it should be clearly printed on the application form and also be raised during the interview. The Standards Committee has to re-evaluate their written application forms as well as be more assertive when interviewing potential candidates. In doing so, the committee will hopefully prevent future secret, closed-door tribunals at the taxpayers' expense and also deny the opportunity of individuals to engage into partisan brinkmanship.

Keith Birmingham

St Peters Court

Bromsgrove