SIR

The Monmouth Town Council has twice recently voted against its own policies, setting its sights against the future and the outside world.

In its own Shaping Our Future document it agreed to support social inclusion with the youth and support development of brown field sites but instead votes to remove its facebook page, a social networking site and votes against a brown field development when the opportunity arises.

The council claim to want better communication with the youth and the outside world but removes its own facebook site that costs nothing and with minimal administration required especially as one councillor had offered to help.

On the same night the council had the opportunity to support a development on a brown field site, with sustainable homes, in keeping with the area, including affordable homes and with the above required amount of car parking space, yet votes against its construction.

If councils deny development of brown field sites then is it any wonder that the county council votes to build on greenfield sites like at Wonastow and makes the words spoken by the mayor and leader of the council all sound a little hollow.

Where are the future generations now growing up in Monmouth expected to live, perhaps on the streets as councillors happy to live in their own homes, happily deny that same right to others.

This hypocritical approach to policy combined with views that don't want outsiders to come into the town, like that expressed recently in the Beacon pages by a local councillor means that the town council has set its sights against the future and the outside world yet still expects help to improve service provision for the town of Monmouth.

If the council continues this approach to policy then they should not be surprised when outside bodies treat the town of Monmouth and its people in an equally dismissive manner.

Stuart Wilson

Monmouth