SO it s possible four members of a group intent on scrapping Letchworth Garden City Council (LGCC) could themselves be elected members of the public body next month. Four seats on the council are currently vacant and elections will be held on January 8. E

SO it's possible four members of a group intent on scrapping Letchworth Garden City Council (LGCC) could themselves be elected members of the public body next month.

Four seats on the council are currently vacant and elections will be held on January 8.

Each seat is contested by a member of the Help Eliminate Letchworth Parish Council (HELP) campaign group, as part of a master plan to dissolve the council, and an independent candidate.

I'm glad an election will be held, giving Letchworth GC residents the chance to have their say.

I was somewhat surprised and a little dismayed that HELP campaigner Peter Groves was given an easy route onto the council when he was recently co-opted on.

It's not that I'm against HELP and in support of LGCC, but I believe taxpayers should have the opportunity to elect who represents them and who spends their money.

Obviously none of the 928 people who voted no to getting rid of the council in a poll earlier this year could be bothered to then support LGCC by opposing Cllr Groves.

It's easy to make your mark on a ballot paper and to pay lip service to a group, but the fact no one in favour of the council stood for the seat led me to believe that those who voted no to getting rid of the council lacked conviction, and it suggested the council's support may be waning.

But now all bets are off as independents and HELP campaigners go head-to-head in a race where the 'winners' will ultimately be decided by Letchworth GC residents.

Perhaps the results of these elections will indicate what the future has in store for LGCC. Elections for all 24 seats on the council will be held in June next year, and HELP will be fielding candidates for all 24 seats.

Could this be the beginning of the end for LGCC?

APPARENTLY we consume an average of 7,000 calories over the course of Christmas Day.

That's four times a woman's daily recommended intake and more than three times a man's.

According to experts, you'd need to run for nine hours to work off a typical Christmas lunch and your Christmas Day binge could lead to an increased likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes, diarrhoea, acne and even dandruff.

And as if that wasn't enough to dampen your Christmas spirit, according to the British Medical Journal there is no scientific evidence of an effective cure or method of preventing hangovers.

But I'm sure this dismal news won't stop people over-indulging. After all, that's part of the Christmas tradition. Have a good one!