Isle of Wight Conservative MP, Andrew Turner yesterday (Tuesday) expressed concerns about the Solent Devolution during a Westminster Hall debate on local government reform.
Concerned by combining with Southampton and Portsmouth, Mr Turner said, “I fear the views of the Island council would be overruled and the island would lose out”.
Turner: “Being pushed into the Solent deal by the Government”
Mr Turner said,
“The Isle of Wight Council — a small local authority with unique challenges — is in a very difficult financial position. Unsurprisingly, a proposal for a mayoral combined authority, with promises of more funding, has tempted the ruling group on the Isle of Wight, but the council leader has told me that he feels we are being pushed into the Solent deal by the Government.
“The Isle of Wight now faces the possibility of being combined with Southampton and Portsmouth in a Solent authority.
“The line being pedalled is that the Solent authority would join the councils together, when in fact it would separate them.
“The situation and needs of the two cities and the Island are disparate. The suggestion is that spending plans for the new authority would require unanimity, but what would happen if they could not reach unanimity? I fear that the views of the island council would be overruled and the island would lose out.”
Christopher Chope, Conservative MP for Christchurch replied,
“Surely the Government have assured us that if individual councils do not go along with a consensus, they effectively have a veto. Indeed, hon. Members of Parliament do as well.”
Mr Turner replied,
“Well, so they say, but the council has been advised that if unanimity fails, two out of three will do. That is what I am told on the Isle of Wight.
“I would welcome clarification from the Minister on stories that have been circulated over the summer about the change in Government thinking on directly elected mayors, which may make other, more suitable options possible.”
Turner: “Deliver what the people want”
He also went on to ask for further help in relation to a fairer funding formula,
“I also ask for a commitment to sit down with the Isle of Wight Council to look at how the underlying problems might be resolved until a fairer funding formula is in place, together with an assurance that it will not be pushed hell for leather into a structure that will not suit the long-term interests of the Isle of Wight.
“Many cities that decided they did not want a Mayor in 2012 now face one being imposed. There is no single clearcut answer to what form local government should take, but I am sure of one thing: we should not rationalise by making local government bigger, but we should deliver what the people want.”
Local government reform
The debate, led by Alec Shelbrooke, Conservative MP for Elmet and Rothwell, surrounded local government reform, including the proposed abolition of the two-tier system of district and borough councils and move to unitary county councils (like the Isle of Wight).
One major change would be each ward member representing a 15,000 people. That would mean the Isle of Wight council would reduce from 40 councillors to just seven.
Mr Turner said,
“It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Howarth. I congratulate my hon. Friend Alec Shelbrooke on securing the debate and on his paper.
“I believe we need reform, and I welcome this debate, but there are a couple of proposals with which I disagree. First, I do not believe that the role of councillor should be a full-time position with a full-time wage.
“On the Isle of Wight there is an all-purpose council. There are currently 40 seats, and the council is led by an independent group with a small majority. The basic allowance for a councillor on the Isle of Wight is £7,700 a year. Last year, the average received by 39 councillors—not the leader—was £10,800.
“Under my hon. Friend’s proposal a council leader would earn £74,000 and the basic salary would be £37,000. I fear that would create a purely economic incentive to stand for the council, and in my view we should not lose the long tradition of the incentive to become a councillor being someone’s dedication to the community they serve.”
He went on to say,
“Secondly, I disagree that one councillor should represent 15,000 residents. That reform would bring down the number of councillors on the Island from 40 to seven.
“One person would represent the entire western area of the Island and a ward in the south. For those unfamiliar with our geography, that is a physically large area for one councillor to cover. Having one councillor who represents 15,000 people might be appropriate for an urban situation, but I do not believe it would work well in rural areas.
“The benefit of having smaller wards is that constituents feel closer to their representative. Many know him or her personally, so their councillor is better positioned to represent them. That is especially important for under-represented groups. An example of that is a ward that is generally one of two represented by the Labour party.
“I believe that reducing the number of councillors and paying higher wages would disconnect councillors from constituents, and I fear that the effect of my hon. Friend’s proposal would be to turn well-known, devoted, grassroots politicians into more remote and distant figures.”
Source: They Work For You
