Well of course he can do his job from a long distance.

Look at the American presidents, George W Bush, Ronald Reagan, George Bush Sr, just to name a few managed to run a country while being on another planet!!!!

No, he should resign. Of course Labour aren't going to want any kind of election at this stage are they?

a lot of communication can take place via internet now so it does not necessarily mean anyone is paying out for international phone calls.

Well done for him and his wife putting their family first.

What planet are we on again?
Anyone in a 'normal' (i.e. not taxpayer funded) job would be expected to hand their notice in.
Are you happy to pay his travel expenses, because I as a taxpayer are not.
This is not about how nice he is for looking after his family, which obviously he is - it is about who is going to pay for it and how effective he can be living so far away. Maybe he has good communications with the internet - how many people who he answers to have internet communication? This is a public office job - it's just not good enough, sorry.
We all make sacrifices to help our families - we just don't expect someone else to foot the bill.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! And here I am thinking that only the local councils over here were blatantly corrupt.
I hope the tax payers are not filtting his bill.
There should be some criminal or civil investigation into the operations of the council here.
Lets see how deep the rabbit hole actually is!

This councillor was quick enough to falsely accuse a local community group of mismanagement and corruption when they encountered financial difficulties a few years ago and it was found that no wrong doing has taken place.

This is blatantly taking the proverbial. Why has it not been brought to the attention of the constituents and taxpayers sooner?

This is wrong.
Personally I have little time for "professional" politicians who represent wards and constituencies in which they do not live, whether it be from Switzerland or the other side of town.
This is something which didn't happen locally in the old days when councils were often made up of independents who stood or fell on their local knowledge, reputation and personal performance. Sadly it is one of the negative consequences of the party system that candidates are "parachuted" in to "winnable" seats for their own political ambitions to be satisfied, rather than for the good of the people they represent. A residency requirement for all candidates should be introduced.

There's got to be more to this. I've just read about this on a blog I visit and the committees Mr Ashton is a member of don't exist! Is he getting expenses for his travel from Switzerland?

http://tonysharp.blogspot.com/2008/09/labour-county-councillor-living-in.html

Ashton should resign right now. He can't do the job from halfway across Europe.

Before people jump to conclusions they should check what you’ve actually reported. To set the record straight:
I’ve not moved to Switzerland. My wife and I have rented a flat there as a holiday home, just as many people, including other councillors, do, but my wife still own and, although a friend stays there as a favour to us when we’re away, live in a house in Wellingborough whenever we are not in Switzerland on holiday to enable us support our daughter there. I am not resident in Switzerland.
Whenever people want to talk to me, I would be pleased to call them back at my expense.
I pay my own travelling expense, the cost of being on the Internet, and telephone bills. I have not claimed any travelling expenses since February, and do not intend to.
I have represented my constituents for the last seven and a quarter years, and to have resigned in March or now would result in council tax payers having to bear the cost of a by-election.
The rules for standing for election as a councillor require a candidate for the whole of the twelve months before the day that he or she is nominated and the day of the election to either (1) be on the electoral register for the area, in this case Northamptonshire, and to remain on the electoral register; OR (2) to occupy as the owner or tenant a house or land in the area; OR (3) to have their only or main employment in the area; OR (4) to reside in the area. Since I retired from working as a solicitor in Northampton six months after being elected to the Council, my only employment has been and remains as a director of a company based and trading in Northampton. When I was elected first in 2001 and then again in 2005, I met not one, but all of these requirements. This is still the case today.
The County Council publishes the records of councillors’ attendance at meetings of the Council on the Internet at http://cmis.northamptonshire.gov.uk/CmisWebPublic/Members.aspx and http://cmis.northamptonshire.gov.uk/CmisWebPublic/Co

James Ashton,
Wellingborough 23/09/2008 09:40:45

Should that not be "James Ashton, Basel 23/09/2008 10:40:45"? Or are you on a flying visit to Northants today?

That was a typical lawyers' answer. The rules of standing for the council are all well and good. What about the responsibility of the councillor to represent his ward properly by living close to it after he has been elected? Other councillors who have gone abroad have resigned so their ward could be properly represented, but you've kept taking your allowances even while living overseas.

After reading some stuff elsewhere I've got some questions for Councillor Ashton.

* What council committees are you a member of?
* How many council and committee meetings have you attended since March?
* How many surgeries have you held in your ward since March?
* How many action group meetings have you attended since March?
* What do your residents think of your ability to represent them when you can't visit them for weeks because you're in Switzerland?

Looking forward to your responses.