THIS week it has once again been reported by certain members of the city's Labour group that this paper has an anti-Labour bias and was in full support of the election campaign by the MBI at the last local elections.

These accusations are not new of course and they have been echoed in rather hysterical pieces in the Lancaster Guardian -- so already the neutral readers have two very strong reasons for doubting the veracity of the claims.

It would be of course quite easy to sit back and accept their tacit admission that at least one paper in the city still held some real influence but I'm afraid it was not The Citizen that scored such successes for the MBI in the last elections. It may not have been entirely down to the MBI either. What these myopic moaners have to learn to accept is that, more than anything, Labour failed spectacularly on polling day.

They failed to listen to the voters and their twisted, untenable arguments allow no credit, for example, to the successful candidates fielded by the Greens who took three strong Labour seats in Castle ward -- typically mean-spirited.

Yes this paper did lead the way attacking the dreadful record of the former administration -- somebody had to... somebody had to give a voice to a dissatisfied public who were fed up of being given the mushroom treatment.

Some Labour mandarins and their cronies in the Press recently kicked up a fuss when new chief executive Mark Cullinan was brought in to steer the authority away from the rocks -- one has to ask why? Because the job wasn't given to their man, perhaps. This is nothing new of course, readers will recall how John Burrows was despatched post haste, without explanation by the last administration -- a decision which cost around £100,000 -- but that's okay, it was only your money. We shouted loudly and first on the badly handled Salt Ayre overspend, crucial Blobby documents which led the council into a disastrous law suit and the unfair and despicable way David Christley was sacked. These and other issues cost you millions... we're not anti-Labour but we are anti arrogance and anti lies. We faced a dirty tricks campaign which, in a just world, would see the perpetrators hanging their heads in shame. We were reported to the Press Complaints Commission, our company bosses, lawyers and probably Mary Whitehouse and all to no avail. Surely if we have been so wrong, so often, something would have been done by now.

Incidentally one of the strongest attacks on a Labour councillor appeared in a letter from a Labour party activist... and it wasn't Michael Jackson and the longest letter ever in this paper was submitted by one Stanley Henig.

Despite this and to show how fair we are I am prepared to devote this whole column to anyone from the Labour group or council who can justify these claims with hard facts or evidence. I won't hold my breath.

Just because one or two officers are under pressure because they don't like the spotlight on their inadequacies doesn't mean we're anti-council. And just because one or two washed-up party dinosaurs get a bee in their bonnet because we won't let them waste millions of your money without comment doesn't mean we're anti Labour.

We don't like officers who mislead councillors, waste your money and use bureaucracy to protect themselves and thwart accountability and we don't like insincere, point-scoring politicians who allow them to do so. Everybody else has nothing to fear.

The MBIs, Greens, Tories and Lib Dems may not get it right but if they ever attempt to carve up this authority in the manner that the previous administration did you can rest assured that, as far as the Press is concerned, it will be us and us alone who will lead the call to bring them to book.

You have been charged nothing for these words of wisdom but you are of course free to cough up good cash and pay for the latest propaganda issued on Fridays. To be fair it's sometimes worth it just to enjoy the latest corrections.