A FURIOUS political row has flared at Warrington after the surprise departure of a senior council officer..
Liberal Democrat and Conservative parties have joined forces to accuse the ruling Labour Group of "vindictiveness" in getting rid of  Rachel Robins, the council's  head of People and Improvement.
Labour has hit back accusing the two opposition parties of "blatant hypocrisy" and carrying out their own "nights of the long knives" when they controlled the council.
In a joint statement, Lib Dem leader Ian Marks (right) and Conservative leader Keith Bland said:  "We are appalled at what is going on at the council.  It is frightening to see the ruling Labour group behaving in such an inept and bullying manner.  
"She (Ms Robins) is an excellent officer and has achieved a great deal at the council.
" Under our direction she master-minded the Equal Pay negotiations which Labour had failed to do during their previous years in power.
"She was the driving force behind the Total Rewards Package recently described by union leaders as 'unique to Warrington and the ultimate document of modernisation, which makes Warrington the employer of choice'.
"We are at a loss to understand what she has done wrong and why she is going.  We can only assume she is being made a scapegoat for the inability of an incompetent Labour leadership to negotiate Terms and Conditions savings with the workforce.
" She is not going as a result of a review of senior management because this has not taken place.  Very little if any of the £2 million savings planned for this year will be achieved which means more cuts to services and compulsory redundancies.  Failure to agree is a massive missed opportunity and we are sure that had we still been in control, we would have been able to negotiate an agreement.
"When senior managers leave in these circumstances there is always a huge cost.  In the current economic climate, how can they possibly justify what must be a six figure sum.  The money should be spent on services for people in the town.
"The Labour Group is acting in a vindictive way and showing a complete lack of understanding of the way modern organisations in the public sector work.  They are stuck in the past and fail to realise there is much more to her department than old-style personnel and welfare.
" High quality management skills are needed to enable organisations to be transformed, the culture changed and to negotiate complex deals with the unions and workforce.  She had these qualities in abundance but now she has gone.  We have no confidence that Labour knows what it is doing."
Leader of the council  Terry O'Neill, (left)  condemned the opposition group leaders for the "blatant hypocrisy".
He said he had explained the position to them and they had responded by embarking on a "hollow political charade.
Cllr O'Neill said: "The officer concerned has left the organisation on standard redundancy terms.  There is no malice or reprisals and it is insincere for them to suggest otherwise.
"People in glass houses really should not throw stones.  The last administration had a revolving door policy for senior officers - unfortunately it only led to the exit.  Their leadership was directly responsible for the loss of no less than four directors, six assistant directors and two senior HR officers.  That looks to be more than a little careless!
"It is rank hypocrisy for them to now be questioning this recent departure.  If the Lib Dems and Tories are so concerned about costs, perhaps they could tell us how much was paid out to these officers during their 'Nights of the Long Knives'?"
Cllr O'Neill said Cllr Marks and Cllr Bland were supposed to be leading separate parties, but appeared to be joined at the hip.
"If they really were concerned about funding for services here in Warrington, then shouldn't they be asking questions of their masters in Westminster, rather than staging this little stunt?  Their Government is slashing the funding for this council - that is what really hurts our communities and yet we don't ever see them standing up for Warrington."