ALDERNEY’S representative in the States of Guernsey has been singled out for criticism by his predecessor. Richard Cox (pictured) resigned from the States of Alderney last month and has taken a parting shot at Richard Willmott.
The allegations have caused controversy in the island, with people quick to refute some of them after they appeared in an article in the Alderney Journal. Mr Willmott did not want to get drawn into an argument.
‘I have no comment other than to say that re-running past election campaigns is a sad way to end a political career,’ he said. Mr Cox claims that Mr Willmott and his supporters have controlled the House in Alderney since January 2007.
‘I am extremely sad to leave Alderney, where I first bought a house 30 years ago, and hope I shall eventually be able to return,’ said Mr Cox. ‘However, I am not in the least sorry to leave the States because the atmosphere among members is often poisonous.’
He said that Mr Willmott’s ‘group’ seemed incapable of accepting political criticism, to which its members invariably respond with personal abuse.
‘I have endured a lot of this over the past two years and would have liked to have taken legal action over one diatribe, circulated outside States membership, except it really would be unseemly for one member to sue another.’
Mr Cox questioned where Vision Alderney’s survey was now.
Alderney’s Island Plan had only been mentioned once in a Billet d’Etat since it was released, he also claimed.
‘Were both basically electioneering?’ said Mr Cox.
But Alderney States chief executive David Jeremiah said the plan was in a report in June 2007 and an annual report in December.
The last chairman of Vision Alderney, Gerry Clarke, stressed that Mr Willmott was not the founder of the organisation as Mr Cox claimed.
‘Contrary to the opinion of Mr Cox and certain other individuals Vision was never a politically motivated body and its aims were never to undermine the autonomy of the States of Alderney,’ said Mr Clarke.
He added that Mr Cox was fortunate not to have legal action taken against him for comments made about Vision Alderney.
Mr Cox did also single out some positives.
He said an excellent job had been done prioritising important projects like La Vallee sewer, the courthouse and Commercial Quay.
The public was also being better informed, he said.
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