IN his letter of January 26 Alderman Fudge raised the very important issue of how Bournemouth council became involved in using council taxpayers’ money to create a ’Bank of Bournemouth’ and how it came to make unsecured loans to would-be local entrepreneurs; a scheme which the Cabinet agreed to withdraw at its meeting last Wednesday.

To the best of my knowledge, council taxpayers in Bournemouth were never consulted as to whether their money should be used in this way and, to rub salt into the wound, according to a further report in the Echo (Friday) the total loss this financial year is not far short of £200,000.

That’s £200,000 that could have been used to compensate for the damaging cuts to being made by the government to a whole range of local public services.

Finally, it is somewhat strange that in a town of more than 180,000 people criticism seems to be confined to a retired Alderman and a small number of elderly residents such as myself.

Where are the former Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors on matters like this?

Have they completely given up ever holding office again?

GORDON CANN

Craigmoor Avenue, Bournemouth

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