Two Conservatives Councillors quit in Coventry

3.37.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 12th Apr 2007

Councillor Heather Rutter and Councillor Mick Noonan have quit the Conservatives and will be standing as Independents in May.

Councillor Mick Noonan, who had been a Conservative member for 15 years said "A lot of soul searching has been done before I came to this decision." He added "Since the party came to power in Coventry it seemed to deteriorate. The sooner the Conservatives are removed from office in this city, the better it will be for the people of Coventry."

Councillor Heather Rutter said "The final straw for me was the disgraceful decision by this Conservative council to take away the earnings from people with learning difficulties," referring to recent budget cuts. She added "This convinced me that I could no longer be a member of a political party that treated disadvantaged people in such a callous and cruel manner."