THE crisis within the Wellington and District Conservative Club deepened this week with the resignation of its new chairman Sam Berg.

He has told the WWN he felt it was best to ‘seek to diffuse the situation and resign as the club’s chairman’ after a row over severing its link to the Conservative party.

Mr Berg told the WWN at the end of July that the club was facing a financial ‘timebomb’ exactly a year after it avoided closure.

Mr Berg said the club had been ‘failing over many years’ and was making a loss - and in order to avoid closure the club must become profitable.

Mr Berg recommended severing the club’s links with the Conservative party. However, there were objections to this plan and it was revealed that club rules require the Association of Conservative Clubs’ written consent to amend its terms in this way.

Mr Berg told the WWN: “Over the past few years the club has struggled to maintain a positive trajectory of self-sufficiency. Moreover, the committee has been placed under an increasing strain primarily as a result of being undersubscribed. I was approached by the club’s then president and secretary and asked to take on the role of chairman. I believe it was hoped that I could steer the club while contributing a younger perspective.

“Having updated the members of the situation, the committee resolved to resuscitate life into the club by proposing resolutions in the alternative to the members, specifically to dissolve the club, disassociate of the Association of Conservative Clubs, and/or remove barriers for new members to join the committee. The primary object of this strategy was aimed to encourage existing members to step forward and ensure the success of the club.

“Unfortunately, there are certain fundamental Club Rules which require the ACC’s written consent prior to amending or rescinding these fundamental rules. One such rule is the club’s association with the ACC; in other words, The club needs the ACC’s consent to disassociate from the ACC. As such, any special resolution must go to the members to evidence to the ACC that this course of action is the desire of the members.

“The club wrote to the ACC to place them on notice that the club is going through this process. It was not unexpected that members unfavourable to the proposed special resolutions would also petition and lobby the ACC for support.”

Following the row, Mr Berg concluded: “I felt it would be best to seek to diffuse the situation and resign as the club’s chairman, as this is now a lost opportunity and a battle for another day.”

Allan Covey, on behalf of the trustees said: “The club trustees do not share Mr Berg’s approach to our problems. We are very confident that the measures we are putting in place will give the club a very good future. We are certainly not going out of business any time soon and as a private club would prefer to keep our arrangements and business matters to ourselves.”

A special general meeting at the club on Saturday, September 17, has now been cancelled but members are invited to attend the club on that night to air their views.