DISTRICT councillors, who broke away from the Tories after a row with their leadership in November 2003 and set themselves up as Independents, claim they are still being 'frozen out' of being given influential roles on the council.

Their belief that they are still unforgiven follows a meeting of the full council last Tuesday at which Independent councillor for Hillside Ann Doyle failed to get voted on to the board of the Bromsgrove District Housing Trust.

The vacancy arose after Tessa Gillespie, who was elected to the post in May, stepped down. Mrs Gillespie is chairman of Bromsgrove Conservative Association.

Proposing Cllr Doyle, her fellow Independent councillor Nick Psirides (Norton) spoke of her vast experience in housing matters while working for the Citizen's Advice Bureau and as chairman of the council's former housing committee for five years.

The other nomination, Labour's Athol Deakin (Sidemoor) also failed.

The victor, by a large majority, was former Tory district councillor Kath Tedstone, from Santridge Lane. This resulted in the majority of Independent councillors leaving the chamber in disgust.

Later, the Independents' leader Cllr Psirides said: "It's obvious the controlling group is determined to exclude our members from any position of influence. But if they continue to do this, government inspectors who are monitoring the council's progress, will do it for them."

Council leader Cllr Dennis Norton (Con-St John's), denying there had been any snub, said there were 'no quibbles' from anyone when Mrs Gillespie, who like Mrs Tedstone, is not a councillor, had been elected.

In 2004 five Tories quit the party rather than face censure after speaking out against what they saw as the undemocratic way the Tory leadership was handling the Victoria Ground development issue.