NOMINATIONS for a next month’s landmark parish council elections are now closed.
While elections for most wards in the new Ryde and Newport Parish Councils will be necessary on May 1 there will be no poll in Whippingham and Northwood because nominations received did not exceed the number of seats available.
When the new councils are established it will mean that the IW is completely emparished.
IW Council leader Cllr David Pugh said: “Not only will the Island now have a comprehensive network of town and parish councils, the quality of those here is extremely high.
“The island enjoys the highest percentage of local council’s attaining Quality Parish status and also has a very high number of qualified parish clerks. The Island was also held up as a model of good practice in a recent University of Wales review of the Quality Parish Scheme, funded by Defra and continues to lead the way to the rest of the country.
We fully support and recognise parish councils as the first tier of local government and because they are a vital strand in the local democratic process. The IW Council is keen to work in partnership with all Island councils, and will be working towards devolvement to quality councils wishing to deliver local services”.
Elections take place on May 1. Counting will take place the following day at Medina Leisure Centre.
A full list of nominations is available at http://www.iwight.com/home/latest_news/parish_elections08/default.asp
