"NO REWARD FOR FAILURE" urges new Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate Mike Simpson

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 11th May 2009

Mike Simpson, South West Surrey's new Parliamentary Spokesperson

Mike Simpson, The Liberal Democrats new Parliamentary candidate for South West Surrey is urging voters not to reward the failure of Conservative-run Surrey County Council. Surrey is one of only four Councils to be awarded just one star by the Audit Commission for its performance in 2008. That puts it in the bottom 3% of all Councils in the Country, alongside Haringey.

"Just as Labour has failed nationally, so the Conservatives in Surrey have also failed." said Mike Simpson, the new Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate for South West Surrey. "I am urging voters in Surrey not to reward the Conservatives failure by returning them to power to make the same mistakes again."

"There has been a catalogue of failures and millions of pounds wasted, but the greatest scandal is the appalling way that the Council has let down children in Surrey. They have not even been undertaking Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks for staff working with children in Surrey! Ofsted and the Audit Commission have both been highly critical of the Council's Children's Services."

"I have managed services for vulnerable young people for many years and I know how tough it can be to deliver the highest standards but the response of the Conservative Party in Surrey is truly shocking. Instead of simply accepting the need to improve services, the Conservative controlled Council applied to the High Court for a review of Ofsted's assessment, spending tax-payers money on the process. The High Court threw out the Tory case, stating that Ofsted's review had been careful and considered.

I have seen the consequences of inadequate child protection in the damaged lives of young people, sometimes leading to drug and alcohol abuse, homelessness or worse. The way that the Conservatives have managed Children's Services is nothing short of a disgrace. I am sorry to say that this fits the pattern of the Conservative Party approach to services for the vulnerable and it is one more reason why we cannot afford to have a return to Conservative government in our country."