This evening (Wednesday), who will be running the Isle of Wight council is due to be decided by the votes cast by the elected councillors.
There’s currently no telling who it will be – and it’s in a fine balance as who will be in charge at County Hall as the Conservatives have 18 seats and the various other candidates have 21.
Not a done deal
This may sound like a done deal, but it’s not.
It’s widely-known there have been discussions between the now-elected councillors who aren’t under the Conservative banner. It’s thought to be highly likely that they’ll be coming together into a coalition.
(Until they are formally announced if there is, or isn’t a group of them and along with it a name, perhaps for short hand we call them the Non-Con Alliance?)
The majority of them would seem to share the same ideals, so perhaps likely to vote together to put the Non-Con Alliance in charge at County Hall.
Three non-joiners
At least three have declared that they will not join the Non-Con Alliance – Lib Dem Andrew Garrett, Labour candidate Richard Quigley and Daryll Pitcher of the Vectis Party.
With those three votes uncertain, it brings it back to a neck-and-neck 18 votes each.
News OnTheWight has spoken to each of them to see if we could find out more for readers about their intentions.
Daryll Pitcher
Daryll Pitcher, ex of UKIP, would perhaps seem like a person with the closest affinity with the IW Conservatives. We put this to him.
He told News OnTheWight that he’d made his mind up who he’s supporting to run the council – but declined to say which group he would be supporting.
“I’ve pretty much made my mind up which way I’ll vote – but I’d rather not comment on how I’ll be voting. That will become apparent this evening.”
“It’s far more on a knife edge from when I was last on the council – it is quite interesting.”
Would he be part of the Non-Con Alliance?
“I made it very clear to both groupings that I wasn’t intending to join either of them- and that’s still the same position – Purely because it wouldn’t do the Vectis Party any good to be jumping into bed with anyone.
“It’s important for me to keep the Vectis party as a separate entity. We need to forge a separate identity if we’re going to make inroads.”
We suggested he must have been made some amazing offer by both groups – he said he had, but had turned them down,
“I made it clear to both sides – my primary aim at the moment is on my Ward – Wootton Bridge. I’ve turned down offers from both sides to do all sorts of things, because I’m just not interested in doing those things at this point in time. I don’t want a senior position within a council of either hue – and I made that clear to both of them. “
Vote: Unknown
Update: Speaking in the meeting, Cllr Pitcher has recently said that the public voted for change and the Conservatives need to understand this.
Andrew Garratt
When asked if he would join the Non-Con Alliance, he said he wouldn’t.
“Being the lone Liberal Democrat on the council, I want to be clear about the political identity I have, so that there’s no doubt that when I’m speaking, I’m speaking a Lib Dem. It’s important that people understand what our party stands for.”
He went on to say,
“I’m very happy to support a non-Conservative led administration – The Conservatives have lost their mandate to lead the council.”
He said he’d be very happy to support the Non-Con Alliance as long as they can deliver on matters of Openness; Transparency; Engagement with the public; Reopening the council – so it become a body that the public have confidence in it and that it’s working for them; Engaging properly with towns and parishes across the Island.
“In particular I’d like them to commit to scrapping the Cabinet Executive. It’s the wrong system for the Isle of Wight.
I believe we should return to a Committee system – one that’s fit for the 21st Century.”
(The Committee system was in place prior to the last Conservative administration).
Asked what the Non-Cons Alliance made of his suggestions, he said his requests were well supported.
“We deserve something better than the last few years,” Garratt told us.
When asked what would happen if the Conservatives did win control this evening he said if they didn’t perform, there was still a chance to call a Vote of no-confidence for them later and unseat them.
Vote: For Non-cons Alliance
Richard Quigley
We’ve already run the piece about Richard Quigley not attending this evening meeting for family reasons.
He did tell News OnTheWight that if he had been in attendance, he’d have voted for the Non-Cons.
He is also very clear that he will not be joining any Non-Con Alliance as he wants to stay independent – indeed he said he hadn’t attended any of the meetings that they’d held.
He did say that he would support the Non-Con Alliance on a vote-by-vote basis.
Vote: None
Image: © Isle of Wight Council
Article edit
6:20pm 26th May 2021 – Added Daryll Pitcher comment, live from meeting
