Let me tell you a story. Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation runs a scheme of management to protect the unique built environment of the first Garden City. This means householders have to get the permission of the Foundation to make material changes their property, even though they have already secured planning consent – or, in many cases, do not need it at all. Such changes include concreting over front gardens and putting in plastic picture windows.
Trouble began in 2003/4 when a local architect, peeved by the Foundation's refusal of his own development proposals – and its own proposals for development near his house - began to campaign and then petition for a parish (town) council. Having obtained the requisite number of signatures he forced the district council to carry out a postal opinion poll. Because the poll was called by a number of residents (as distinct from elected members) it was limited to those on the edited register – which excludes those on the full register who opted not to have their details made available to bothersome commercial interests. With a promise of running on a minimal budget, the town council lobby carried the day with 62% of the votes cast (only 21% of the electoral roll).
When the first election was held in 2005, with no effective opposition, the “independent” town councillors won 23 out of 24 seats - albeit none secured more than 13% of the eligible vote. Things went from bad to worse. The council got through six town clerks in its first three years. The then leader was suspended for bullying staff. The council spent £10,000 on a mayoral coat of arms and chain. In 2008, it trebled its precept to £600,000 - £50 p.a. for a Band D home – two and a half times the all England average. (Unlike all higher tier authorities, parish councils are immune from capping.) The parish employed six staff even though it had no power to do anything other than dole out money to charities of its choosing and make representations on (meddle in) planning applications.
That was enough for a bunch of residents who called themselves HELP (Help Eliminate Letchworth Parish Council). Yes – it includes me. We got up a petition to abolish the council. In the subsequent poll, 76.3% voted in favour of abolition. But because of government policy on governance reviews, we shall have to give the council at least eight years before this can be done.
So HELP put up candidates in the 2009 election which was held on the same day as local council elections and open to all those on the electoral roll. After an amazingly effective campaign run through the press and over the internet, on a turn out of over 40%, HELP candidates won 22 of the 24 seats. (One was tied and lost on the toss of a coin and the other lost by only six votes.) The biggest wins were in the largest and most affluent ward where the voters’ principal concerns were to protect the environment and value of their homes and minimise their council tax. Results were closer in those wards which had benefited for the council’s largesse and where a high proportion were on Council Tax Benefit and immune from any increase in precept.
HELP have since reduced the precept to nil and effectively put the council to sleep – undertaking only the minimum statutory duties. The aggrieved ex-Town Councillors sought judicial review to prevent the winding down, making the staff redundant and disposal of the council offices.
The judge gave them short shrift saying (amongst other things) “The object of the claim is to frustrate the lawful decisions of a democratically elected council by judicial order.”
So there we have it for the time being, except for the hearing on redundancy terms of the staff which will shortly before an employment tribunal. The previous council changed the terms of employment just before the election. The current council have been advised the terms are ultra vires and therefore declined to pay.
We all have to sit things out until the next council elections in three years time before we can have a new election – and if HELP win the day – hold a governance review and get rid of the council.
So what lessons can we learn from our experience in Letchworth?
1. Most people don’t care about local politics and local issues generally – only when they affect them in particular.
2. Small minorities can exert undue influence and manipulate the local agenda.
3. Single issue lobbies can carry all before them.
4. Government needs to change existing rules, so that issues put to a local poll by local residents are put to the entire electorate – not just those on the edited register. (In Letchworth, 45-50% of voters are not on the edited register.)
5. If you do not yet have a parish council, think carefully about trying to get one started!
No comments:
Post a Comment