Call for council leader to withdraw remarks (From South Wales Guardian)

Call for council leader to withdraw remarks

8:00am Wednesday 3rd October 2012 in Ammanford news

CARMARTHENSHIRE county council leader Kevin Madge was remaining defiant this week in the face of a Plaid Cymru motion calling on him to withdraw comments aimed at MP Jonathan Edwards and AM Rhodri Glyn Thomas relating to planning applications for two Sainsbury’s stores.

The applications – for supermarkets in Llandeilo and Cross Hands – were ‘called-in’ by the Welsh government in July when Welsh ministers decided that not all policy decisions were taken into consideration by county planners.

The Labour leader, in a joint statement with Sainsbury’s, then sparked a furore by accusing Mr Edwards and Mr Thomas of “deliberately trying to sabotage”

the applications.

Darren Price, Plaid’s Gorslas councillor, is now putting forward a motion at full council nextWednesday (October 10) calling on Cllr Madge to withdraw his statement.

Mr Edwards, who described Cllr Madge’s remarks as defamatory, said he would be attending the public gallery for the debate.

Cllr Madge accused Plaid of “playing a game of smoke and mirrors. Hundreds of jobs are at risk due to the ‘call in’ – a ‘call in’ asked for by the localAMandMP.”