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Independent Councillors Claim Power is Too Concentrated As They Form a Political Group
Published on: 26 Sep, 2018
Updated on: 26 Sep, 2018
The two new Independent councillors at Guildford Borough Council (GBC) Tony Rooth (Pilgrims) and Bob McShee (Worplesdon) have formed an Independent group at Millmead. The two councillors recently resigned from the Conservative group and have now joined forces to campaign, they say, for democratic transparency and accountability at the borough council.
Rooth said: “Local councils should be independent of party politics. Local democracy should require councillors to concentrate on local issues and local communities, not national politics. Borough councillors should focus on Guildford, not Westminster.”
By forming a political group the allocation of council committee seats which are allocated in proportion to the number of setas a group holds will need to be reviewed but it is understood there is no guarantee that this will result in Rooth regaining his planning committee seat which was lost last month after a controversial debate and a series of votes rejecting all options offered.
The two councillors share a concern that too much power is concentrated and held by a small number of councillors.
Cllr Rooth, a former council leader and ward councillor since 2003, continued: “Guildford may become a one-party state with local power and influence concentrated in the hands of a political leadership. Council Leader Paul Spooner’s responsibilities include: partnerships, planning and regeneration, including the Local Plan, and his deputy, Matt Furniss, deals with governance and infrastructure which includes major projects and all operational services.
Cllr McShee, who has been a councillor for Worplesdon ward since 2011, added: “Both councillors and residents need regularly to know what is going on, be able to contribute to debate and have serious influence on the decision making process. Backbench councillors are allowed little involvement and influence over council decisions which often start at short notice, proceed behind closed doors and then emerge at the eleventh hour for a final decision.
“Likewise, many residents feel they have no real inclusion, let alone influence, in decision making and see public consultation as something that the council just has to do, rather than wants to do properly.”
Rooth concluded: “The council leadership must be held accountable for its decisions. For example, “The Village” project has cost £1 million of taxpayers’ money spent on a now empty, boarded up site opposite the bus station. And £1 million has been spent on preparations for the Walnut Bridge with nothing to see for a project with a forecast overall cost of £3.3 million.”
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Responses to Independent Councillors Claim Power is Too Concentrated As They Form a Political Group
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Jules Cranwell
September 26, 2018 at 10:11 am
This is reporting at its best, and a powerful indictment of the current leadership.
How many more need to abandon the sinking ship before this mob starts to truly listen to residents.
We don’t want your vanity projects, we don’t want to be linked to an area of the world where the eating of dogs is cause for a festival. What possible value is there for our residents to have links with this place.
It seems to have been a stunt born of personal ambition to get the attention of the PM.
Jim Allen
September 26, 2018 at 4:09 pm
Excellent news. Other councillors please join them.
Mary Smith
September 26, 2018 at 4:59 pm
I don’t necessarily agree with everything Cllrs Rooth and McShee say but at least they answer the questions which is more than you can say for the council’s leadership. I wish them well – Guildford needs more Independent minded councillors who are prepared to speak rather than toe the political party line.
Gordon Bridger
September 26, 2018 at 6:33 pm
Congratulations to the two new independent councillors. We need many more of them and this as good a time as any for them to prosper as national party loyalties are at their nadir.
Here are some practical suggestions to get the best out of Independent Ward representatives:
1. Work closely with residents associations and any other local group. Ensure that if they wish it the council has them on their circulation list. Offer to produce a regular information sheet (say quarterly?) about council intentions and decisions. Where there are no parish councils, as in the town, set up a system so that interested Groups are informed about council intentions as parishes are.
2. To ensure that ward councillors have a fair say in council decisions promise to reintroduce the committee system (which the government now allows) so that there are committees which view decisions before they go to the Executive. This allows councillors with experience and interests to be effective participants. Committees such as Finance and Development, Housing and Social Welfare, Heritage and Environment, Parks and Rural affairs, Planning provide a forum for better decision making.
3. Executive members should be chosen by councillors and not the council leader.
4. The Planning Committee should go back to having a member from each ward (currently reduced from 23 to 15) and the calling in of planning applications should revert to 10 requests from the current 20.
5. When in office, require all officers’ reports to have 1-2 page summary preface which sets out what is proposed and the decisions required.
I hope this will help and encourage residents to stand. One person can make a difference.
Jeff Hills
September 27, 2018 at 11:29 am
I wholeheartedly agree with what Tony Rooth and Bob McShee have said and agree with what they are doing. Hopefully, more will join them. Good luck.