AS an Independent councillor, I’m often asked why I got into local politics. The answer, for me, is simple, writes county councillor Lynda Atkins

I found myself one day a few years ago thinking ‘they should be doing something about that…’.

I can’t remember now what the particular problem was, but I can remember wondering who exactly ‘they’ were and then realising that I couldn’t sit on the sidelines and expect others to do it all for me – I needed to get involved and help to get the work done.

For my first five years on the county council, as the only Independent, getting the work done meant representing my division of Wallingford and getting the best deal I could for everyone I represented.

With last May’s election and the huge change in the balance of power at County Hall between the political parties, the role of the Independents (four of us now) has changed.

Last May, three of us (myself, Mark Gray and Les Sibley) took the decision to support the Conservatives in forming an administration to run the county council.

As Independent county councillors we were elected to do the best possible job for our local residents, without being constrained by party political concerns.

In our judgement, the interests of all Oxfordshire residents, including those in our divisions, would best be served by a stable administration which could deliver services over the four-year term of this council, balanced by robust and independent scrutiny.

Part of our Alliance agreement with the Conservatives was that we would have the opportunity to influence the annual budget – we hoped positively.

As Independent members of the Alliance we are now faced, as is the entire council, with some really tough decisions.

There is no doubt that there have to be still more reductions in services that have already been hard-hit.

It has become clear that cuts imposed by central government are going to have a huge impact in Oxfordshire.

The county council is faced with having to make savings of £61m a year over the next four years, on top of all the changes that have already been agreed. That’s not an easy environment in which to be influencing the budget, but the contribution we are trying to make is an important one.

We can’t cut the overall level of savings, but we can make sure that each and every area which is being considered is looked at thoroughly and that all assumptions are challenged.

We can also bring really detailed experience of our local areas to the table to try to come up with ideas for alternative ways to deliver services while still saving money – not just in our divisions but across Oxfordshire.

The Alliance agreement between the Independents and Conservatives also means that the budget proposals that are finally put forward will be scrutinised by a committee chaired by Councillor Liz Brighouse, the Labour Leader of the Opposition on the county council and not by Conservative councillors looking at a Conservative budget.

That level of scrutiny will, we hope, make sure that we do, as a council, really deliver the best that we can for local residents given the almost impossible situation we’re faced with.

None of that is going to change the fact that we have very, very difficult choices to make, but we intend to see that everything possible is done to reduce the damage these cuts will make as much as possible.

That might well have happened without Independents being directly involved, but now we can be sure that it will.

So, ‘we’ rather than ‘they’ are doing all they can about it.