Earlier today (Friday), News OnTheWight broke the news that members of the Empowering Islanders group of councillors intend to join others in a plan to overthrow the current Isle of Wight council leadership.
This afternoon Cllr Chris Jarman, leader of the Empowering Islanders Group, confirms their intention to join with other councillors to seek an extraordinary meeting of Full Council.
As reported earlier, the plan is to replace Cllr Lora Peacey-Wilcox – who has been leading the council for the last two years – with the leader of the Conservative group of councillors, Joe Robertson. Once Cllr Robertson is in place, the rest of the changes can occur.
Establishing a Coalition Cabinet
In a press release issued by Cllr Jarman he said it was,
“So that changes of Leadership and the establishment of a Coalition Cabinet can be enacted to provide the financial and regulatory stability so desperately needed in these challenging times, and to embrace all those elected Members with the experience, acumin and inclination to deliver what this Island needs.”
Political make-up of IWC
The Empowering Islanders group was formed earlier this month, and is made up of three former Alliance councillors and one former Island Conservative councillor.
The current political make-up of the council sees
- 16 Conservative councillors
- 13 Alliance councillors
- 4 Empowering Islanders
- 3 Liberal Democrats
- 1 Labour
- 1 Independent Labour
- 1 Independent (former Vectis Party councillor now jailed on sex offences).
Jarman: Working with others
Cllr Jarman said the Group is embarking on a new journey that, only a few weeks ago, none of them “could have imagined”. He said,
“Although we are only two weeks old, Empowering Islanders have been working with other Groups and ungrouped Members to find a model that provides the stability and resources required.
“We have done so collaboratively and calmly, and like our positioning at the recent Annual Council meeting, we have taken a largely neutral position on political matters whilst choosing to use our time on more productive discussions.”
Jarman: Alliance are “rejecting talent available elsewhere”
Up until last week, and for 102 weeks, Cllr Jarman was the Cabinet member in charge of finances. Cllr Jarman claims he was ousted, but the Alliance say that he gave up that role when he defected to a new group.
He added today,
“The existing administration has reduced to only 13 Members that are attempting to run the Council in an increasingly fragile mode whilst rejecting from their Cabinet talent available elsewhere.
“Many of those 13 Members have limited time and experience to support the Cabinet and so responsibility has been piled onto a reducing few that are already significantly overburdened.
“Attempting to provide an effective administration with such limited and declining resources is not prudent or rational.”
News OnTheWight has contacted the leader of the council for comment and will update once we hear back.
Image: Empowering Islanders councillors, Peter Spink, Dave Adams, John Medland and Chris Jarman
