Established Parties Retain Grip of Planning Committee

Published on: 5 Dec, 2018
Updated on: 7 Dec, 2018

The leadership of the council, with the support of the Liberal Democrats and Labour groups, got its preferred option for the reallocation of committee seats through last night’s (December 4) full council meeting but only after lengthy debate, an unusually personal attack on the motives of a councillor and three recorded votes.

The controversial subject had to be revisited after the defection of Cllr Colin Cross (Lovelace) from the Liberal Democrats to form, with former Conservatives Tony Rooth (Pilgrims) and Bob McShee (Worplesdon), the “Independents Alliance”.

In the debate, fault lines with the majority Conservative group became even more evident with seven Tories joining members of the Independent Alliance, and two of the three Greenbelt Group councillors, to vote in favour of an option that would have given the three-member Alliance a seat on the sought-after Planning Committee. Instead, the new group was given a seat on the Licensing Committee at the expense of the Liberal Democrats.

The new allocation is shown below:

The adopted option for the allocation of committee seats at GBC. Changes shown in red.

Cllr James Walsh

In the debate, Cllr Tony Rooth was criticised by Cllr James Walsh (Lab, Stoke), who said: “I am very disappointed to see the Tony Rooth party sink to this level to achieve what persistently appears to be the goal of obtaining for Tony Rooth a seat on the Planning Committee.

“Despite years of decrying political groupings in local politics it is very interesting to see Cllr Rooth now leading a party, sorry grouping, which appears to be little more than a vehicle for his own ambitions.

“Criticising the other parties as they do, I am pretty sure the Conservative group, Liberal group or us, have not been established with the express purpose of furthering the agenda of a single councillor. That would be inappropriate and not in the interests of our residents.”

Cllr Tony Rooth

Today Cllr Rooth said: “The Independents Alliance only asked to be treated in the same fair and equitable way as GGG who have been allocated one seat on the important Planning Committee.

“Both GGG and ourselves have three councillors. Cllrs Cross, McShee and myself have a combined 25 years Planning Committee membership with the necessary experience to be a committee full member or substitute. Conservatives, Lib Dems and Labour vetoed all such possible options for no valid reasons

“I was also subjected to personal attack during the debate. Cllr Walsh alleged that the ‘Independents Alliance’ is ‘nothing more than a vehicle for (my) own ambitions’, and Cllr Bilbe [Con, Normandy] said was, ‘little more than attempt to get one individual on the Planning Committee’.

“I have never heard or seen such personal behaviour in any council meeting during my 15 years at Guildford.”