Agenda item

Report No: COU/FH/18/012

The Chairman opened this item by addressing the meeting in her capacity as Vice-Chairman of the Future Governance Steering Group. 

She outlined the work the Group had undertaken in respect of the proposed options for the West Suffolk warding pattern, as set out in Report No COU/FH/18/012 and gave thanks to the Members concerned as well the public and various organisations who had taken part in looking at the ward boundaries.

Council were advised that the Boundary Commission would be developing their warding proposal during May and June and would publish it for public consultation in July, and the importance of Members responding to the consultation was stressed.

The Chairman then outlined the way in which the report would be considered; in that each block of options would be taken in turn with Members being given opportunity to comment. 

Any comments made would be noted; with the view to taking one collective vote on the recommendations within Report No COU/FH/18/012, inclusive of an amendment to Recommendation 2 in order to reflect that Members would be given until Friday 27 April in which to submit any further comments on the options to Officers.

Attention was drawn to the supplementary paper, which had been circulated following publication of agenda, and which set out some typographical corrections to the report.

Lastly, Members were advised that St Edmundsbury Borough Council, at their meeting the night before, confirmed that they were happy with the preferences that had been expressed by the Steering Group, as set out in the report.

Each of the following options were then taken in turn, with Members being invited to comment upon each:

·         Options A, A1, A2 & B (Rural Wards);

·         Options C & D (Brandon Wards)

·         Options E, E1, F, F1, G and H (Bury St Edmunds & Haverhill Wards)

·         Options I & J (Mildenhall Wards)

·         Options K & L (Newmarket Wards)

Following which the Director summed up the comments made as follows:

Options C & D (Brandon Wards)

Councillors Victor Lukaniuk, David Palmer and Peter Ridgwell collectively raised concerns at the proposed reduction in the number of Ward Councillors for Brandon.

Specific concerns were raised with regard to the potential reduction in the level of Locality Budget for the town.  The Chairman explained that the Shadow Council was yet to have set a budget for the West Suffolk Council and Locality Budgets would be considered as part of this.

The Director agreed to note the Members’ concerns and reiterated that the Boundary Commission’s statute when setting ward boundaries was to ensure electoral equality.  Future housing/population forecast growth was therefore considered as part of this, however, factors such as deprivation were not.

Options K & L (Newmarket Wards)

It was noted by the Director that the majority of Members preferred Option L over Option K.  However, there was a desire to amend the ward names proposed.

The Director explained that he would welcome alternative ward name proposals by 27 April, however, if it was not possible to submit these by the deadline he would specify to the Boundary Commission that the ward names in Option L were ‘holding names’ and that the Council reserved their right to name the wards at a later date.

It was then proposed by Councillor Simon Cole, seconded by Councillor Andy Drummond and with 20 voting for the motion, 1 against and with 1 abstention it was

RESOLVED:

That:-

1.   Council considered the evidence received during the Council’s consultation and the advice of the Future Governance Steering Group, so that it could make the final decision required in respect of the Council’s representation to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) on the proposed ward boundaries for West Suffolk; and

2.   Subject to the reporting of comments on them made at this meeting, or submitted to Officers by 27 April 2018, all of the options set out in Appendix A of Report No COU/FH/18/012 be adopted for submission to the MHCLG.