HARLOW MP Bill Rammell has claimed his hands are tied over calls for extra councillors to represent Church Langley.

Speaking to more than 100 residents and councillors at Thursday's Church Langley debate, Mr Rammell said he supported pleas for more representation, but could not speed up the review of electoral boundaries.

And he was so adamant no action could be taken by Harlow Council that he promised to pay the Conservative party £1,000 if the Tories could prove otherwise.

Mr Rammell said: "I totally support the case for exclusive representation for Church Langley. It is a different area from the rest of Harlow.

"It is very clear that Church Langley does need and does deserve local councillors. But what I will not do is mislead people."

The MP said a review would be conducted by May 2001, and no sooner, adding: "Harlow Council does not have the power to conduct an interim review. Church Langley is not sufficiently unique and will have to wait its turn.

"To claim that the council can just click its fingers is misleading in the extreme."

Former Harlow Council chairman Jock Arnott, from Potters Field, who challenged the MP to the public debate at Church Langley Community Centre, described Mr Rammell's attitude as "undemocratic."

He said: "The keyword is democracy, which is sadly lacking in Church Langley. We are completely under represented and they call that a democracy."

Quoting Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels he said: "If you tell a lie often enough people will believe it. The Goebbels' technique seems to have come to Harlow."

And despite Mr Rammell's arguments, Mr Arnott has vowed to continue his crusade for democracy,

He has already asked Harlow Council to take one seat from Brays Grove ward, which has 3,000 electors, and give it to Church Langley and Potter Street ward, which has 7,500 electors.

He said: "I demand that Harlow Council take immediate steps to take a seat from Brays Grove and give it to Church Langley, in the interests of democracy.

"It they do not that it proves they do not want Church Langley to have councillors, and they will suffer heavy defeat at the polls."

No-one was available to comment at Harlow Council.

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