Christain Vassie has been the City Councillor for the Wheldrake ward since 2003. Christian Vassie was educated in York at the Minster Song School and later at Archbishop Holgate's School.Christian Vassie studied African Languages and World Music at the School of African and Oriental Studies in London from 1978-1982 graduating with a BA (hons.). Since graduating he has worked as a musician and composer, running his own production company since 1986 creating music for various TV productions and films. Christian Vassie is also a published author of both children's and adult books.
Christian Vassie claims on his website (as of 10/01/2010) that he is currently a member of York City Council's ruling executive with responsibility for Leisure and Heritage. He was sacked from this job in May 2009. He has since been critical of his council colleagues on a number of issues.
Christian Vassie was involved in a three year legal battle with his neighbours over their garden boundary. In 2007 this resulted in him having to pay £22, 500 in legal costs.
Christian Vassie identifies his two main campaign interests as the environment and civil liberties.
Contact Details
Chritian Vassie, 10 Blake Court, Wheldrake YO19 6BT
email: christian@vassie.co.uk
A more full description about his legal battle with his neighbour can be found at:
ReplyDeletehttp://themorningflight.com/news-comment/l-j-rawlinson-v-cllr-christian-vassie/
This raises quite a number of disturbing issues particularly the judges description of him and the way he used the council's legal department
The court hearing in 2007 did not consider any evidence but was a costs hearing.
ReplyDeleteOn 19th June 2009 at York County Court a judge, for the first time, considered the evidence in the boundary dispute referred to above when the surveyor who had been employed to set out the boundary by the court as part of the original case took Christian Vassie to court for refusing to pay the last bill.
The judge dismissed the surveyor's claim, agreeing with Christian Vassie that the surveyor had produced a plan which was unfit for submission to the Land Registry as it showed the boundary in two positions at once. The surveyor's plan had copied the neighbour's original drawings, which had also shown the boundary in two positions at once. This had been the key to Christian Vassie's defence but had not been heard at the original court hearing. A plan fit for registration with the Land Registry has still to be prepared.
I note that the "more full description" on the Morning Flight refuses to publish comments sent in by Vassie himself. Rather than being a "more full description," it appears to be a reiteration of Vassie's neighbour's position, with lengthy and uninformed comment by autopilot antipoliticians.
ReplyDeleteFor me issue isn't that of a boundary dispute - it makes no difference to me where somebody else's boundary is. The bottom line is that I work hard and when I'm taxed I expect the money to be used well. I don't expect it to be spent on:
ReplyDelete* Mortgages that don't exist
* Cleaning Moats
* Bird houses
On a local level we can add to that list subsidising a councillors legal bills. This is our money, why should we have to pay?
The irony in all of this is that his campaign is based on the idea that he is an outsider *not* tainted by the same brush as his opponents.