Former Sandwich town councillor Charles Miller has further explained his reasons for resigning, as he feels the Town Team needs to be held to account.

Last week, the Mercury reported Mr Miller walked out of a full council meeting after a disagreement over proposed new traffic measures in Sandwich.

The council agreed to use £45,000 of allocated Section 106 money to investigate and possibly install traffic calming measures in New Street, High Street, Moat Sole and Strand Street, but Mr Miller thought the proposals needed to be tested.

This week, he told us: “I did not want to be party to collective responsibilty for what I saw as a deficiency of due process.

“I wasn’t trying to stall progress. I didn’t know and nobody knows whether the proposals would work.

“What I wanted to do is have a look at the proposals and have them properly tested, to see if they work and see what the implications are before they bet the bank.

“Somebody surely needs to bring some sort of evidence. It’s a crazy way to spend public money.”

He also says that the proposals are not at a critical stage.

Mr Miller, a lawyer, joined the council in May last year, and has contributed to many areas, particularly, according to the Mayor of Sandwich Cllr Paul Graeme, to traffic and signage in the town.

Mr Miller said: “I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a councillor. It was a privilege and my fellow councillors were marvellous, dedicated people. We respected each other’s views, even if we didn’t agree with them.

“In my electoral address I said I wanted to particularly focus on transport.

“I didn’t realise at the time that the council had contracted everything to do with transportation in Sandwich, to the Town Team.

“The Town Team is a very good thing, we should have them everywhere, but they have been given all the power without the responsibilty. The council has no power but responsibilty.”

His concerns are not in relation to banning lorries from the town, he says that is an entirely different matter, but about the proposed traffic calming measures in New Street, High Street, Moat Sole and Strand Street.

He said: “It’s an inconvenient truth that in three of the four streets in question there is no speed problem. There is no accident data either.”

He would like the Town Team to produce evidence such as where the road running takes place to and from, what will happen if parking chicanes are installed, and what it would do to public services, lorry deliveries and parking provision.