Relevance of the parish council - 2007/05/29 22:28I note that you stated optimistically that "...you expected the parish council to be a topic of great interest." To date, the only postings on the discussion board re the council are from yourself, and my opinion that the creation of the council did not accurately reflect the feelings of the majority of Baildonians,and that the selection of some of its members was not democratic, in that they were nominated by their supporters and not elected. As you are now a member of the council, I do not expect you to agree with me, but this dearth of items for discussion seems to indicate that most Baildon residents have little or no interest in the parish council, and do not expect much from it. I may be cynical, but I suspect that the only reason that Bradford MDC welcomed the creation of the parish council was because it enabled the MDC to extract more council tax by the imposition of the council precept.I also suspect that whatever meritorious suggestions might be put forward by the parish council with a view to making a better Baildon they will only be acted upon if they fit in with the views of the elected and overpaid councillors at City Hall.
Post edited by: redcap, at: 2007/05/29 22:35
Post edited by: redcap, at: 2007/05/29 22:36
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I appreciate you taking the time to post to the forum. I wish more people would.
Obviously this is not the first time I have heard such comments but, as you say, you are the only one to voice them here. I don't know whether that is because visitors feel uncomfortable posting to a forum, they are not Baildon residents, they feel it will not serve any purpose or if they are just not interested.
Baildon will benefit from having a Parish Council for at least two reasons
The Parish Councillors will have close ties with District Councillors and organisations to make sure they are pulling their weight for Baildon.
There will be more money to spend in Baildon. This is additional money. It is not money to be spent on things that Bradford should be doing anyway.
We can ask questions about how we can satisfy the requirements for forming a Council (petition + poll) and yet struggle to get nominations for all wards. But Baildon now has a Council and we must make sure that the precept (which is the identifiable cost to each Baildon resident) is used effectively. This is why I stood for election, my opinions do not automatically change by becoming a Councillor. The apparent/assumed lack of interest is something the Council will be discussing and hopefully addressing. Unfortunately I think this is something many Councils suffer from.
Some people feel that there has been very little information about the Council. Questions like
Who are they?
What are they going to do?
How are they going to do it?
all need to be answered and effectively communicated to all Baildon residents.
Websites like this can be efficient means of communicating but they rely on people taking the time to visit them. The Council will be discussing how to communicate with Baildon residents effectively - the Council must not only be working, it must be seen to be working.
I am posting this more as a resident than a Councillor though I do have a more direct influence on the agenda as a Councillor.
Interesting times are ahead.
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Alan Walsh
Re:Relevance of the parish council - 2007/06/07 23:16Hello, again, Paul. As two of the Parish councillors are also Bradford councillors, isn't there the possibility of a conflict of interest here, when the Parish council proposes something that is against the policy of their particular party. Also how are you giong to keep them up to scratch? In John Coles' words, he regards parish councillors as his 'eyes and ears' to keep him informed of what is going on in the village, which seems to be relegating you to a subordinate position from the outset. I thought that was why councillors drew at least £10,000 a year, so that they can deal with everything that pertains to their ward, rather than having unpaid volunteers to do the job for them. Another thing. What guarantee is there that the parish council precept will not be drawn on by BMDC for purposes uncomnnected with Baildon? Finally, I have no doubt of your integrity, and I hope that your opinions do not change, merely because you are now a councillor, but, you are now in the political arena, so may find that if you want to stay there, you will have to modify your opinions, like it or not. Regards. Alan Walsh
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Paul Marfell
Re:Relevance of the parish council - 2007/06/07 23:57Alan Walsh wrote: Hello, again, Paul. As two of the Parish councillors are also Bradford councillors, isn't there the possibility of a conflict of interest here?Yes there is, and it has to be mentioned whenever that is the case. It is better to have them than for there to be 2 more vacancies. Alan Walsh wrote: In John Coles' words, he regards parish councillors as his 'eyes and ears' to keep him informed of what is going on in the village, which seems to be relegating you to a subordinate position from the outset. I thought that was why councillors drew at least £10,000 a year.As part of our business I expect to have a reasonable amount of communication with District Councillors and I am sure they will make use of shared information as they see fit. Our intention would be that it is to the benefit of Baildon. I think you might be over the top with your £10,000 but I have not checked. Alan Walsh wrote: What guarantee is there that the parish council precept will not be drawn on by BMDC for purposes uncomnnected with Baildon?The full amount is given to the Parish Council and it is the Parish Council that spend it for the benefit of Baildon. In that respect we are only answerable to the electorate. Alan Walsh wrote: Finally, I have no doubt of your integrity, and I hope that your opinions do not change, merely because you are now a councillor, but, you are now in the political arena, so may find that if you want to stay there, you will have to modify your opinions, like it or not.Thanks. We will have to see. I don't know if my opinions will change but my behaviour probably will - under the influence of the rules and regulations.
The next meeting in on Monday 11th June 2007.
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Alan Walsh
Re:Relevance of the parish council - 2007/06/08 22:10Thank you for your prompt reply, Paul. The figures for the remuneration given to councillors were available in the Telegraph and Argus. Check their files and you will see that a councillor without special responsibilities draws £10,000 per annum. With special responsibilities, they draw up to £23,000, p.a. The leader of the Council draws £40,000 p.a. They hardly do it for the satisfaction of serving the public, do they? My final thought, and after this,you will no doubt be glad to hear that I'll leave you alone-unless something else draws my interest- is that your phrase 'Councillors will make use of shared information as they think fit' is interesting. If they don't make use of it, will they tell us why not? Alan Walsh. LL.B (Hons) MA, LL.M.
Post edited by: redcap, at: 2007/06/08 22:14
Post edited by: redcap, at: 2007/06/08 22:15
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Paul Marfell
Re:Relevance of the parish council - 2007/06/08 22:41Alan Walsh wrote: Check their files and you will see that a councillor without special responsibilities draws £10,000 per annum. With special responsibilities, they draw up to £23,000, p.a. The leader of the Council draws £40,000 p.a. You are right. I was going from what someone told me recently. I have since had a look at this file.
I hope something does draw your interest. Why not have a look at the Baildon Wiki? Feel free to register and edit the content or send me things that would fit the Wiki.
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