Is the EERA A QUANGO? Aand Who Controls It?

Some of the press and the Tories are claiming that Eastern Region Assembly is an un-elected quango controlled by Labour and the Lib Dems. Neither statement is true.

The reality is that it is not a quango because N+G mean non-governmental, and it is "governmental", an advisory body to the Government Office for the East of England and the ODPM.

It is not controlled by Labour and the Liberal Democrats. The truth is that the Conservative Group is the largest on the Assembly, which gives the group the chairmanships of the Assembly and the powerful panels like planning.

The membership is

Conservative 40

Labour 17

Liberal Democrat 15

Stakeholder group 32

If the Tories do not like the decisions of the Assembly, they should complain to their own party representatives on the Assembly.

Michael Heavens, Epping Forest Liberal Democrat Parliamentary spokesman said, "Liberal Democrats would prefer to see democratically elected Regional Assemblies whose size and boundaries would be decided by a referendum in each region. Until that becomes possible, I think that it would be better to continue to have some influence through the existing structure."