Page 17 - Demo

June 2025 | Phonebox Magazine 17June 2025 and turn up the heat then.A lot of places that do have wards are much bigger than us, said Deirdre. And there is a good mix between this side and that side. Shops on one side, a church on the other. We don%u2019t have shops on any of our estates. We tried to get some, but they weren%u2019t taken up. But we are a cohesive place and we don%u2019t have diff erent centres.Thank you for the proposals, which made interesting reading, said Chris Tennant to Peter. You could tell there was a %u2018but%u2019 coming. But I concur with colleagues here in relation to our approach because I do see a diff erence between walking to a polling station and casting a vote in different locations, that would be geographically easy to administer for Milton Keynes City Council, and the way this town council operates. We look at things as one voice and not as two wards, and we are, on the whole, for a common purpose and are not fi ghting battles east and west up the High Street. Do we need two wards? This really is about the governance around voting, said Peter. If there was a by-election it would only be that half of the town have an election %u2013 the other side would not. He knew he was fi ghting a losing battle here, but he struggled on, to his credit. The last by-election cost %u00a39,000, and the next one could be half that, but I take your point, he said. You%u2019re saying that having two wards would be more effi cient, said Chris. I don%u2019t think it will be more effi cient for us, though, and we don%u2019t have that many by-elections. We have managed to co-opt people. I%u2019m not sure that it would be more effi cient.We%u2019re down about three people at the moment, said Colin Rodden, but I agree with fellow councillors that we need to keep a fairly neat patch, just one ward, but what I think we do need is to engage more with people so that they actually come forward. That%u2019s what we really need. So anything you can do to engage more people would be really good. I know it%u2019s diffi cult getting people to join the parish council, and thank you for all the work you do, said Peter. I%u2019ll take that back with me, he added, although it sounded like he probably wouldn%u2019t. The poor chap had had enough and wanted to get home.I know you want to split us for effi ciency, said David Tyler. But democracy isn%u2019t always effi cient. I don%u2019t see any benefi t at all. You%u2019re actually chasing excellence at the expense of good.If you want to save some money, Peter, said David Chennells, why don%u2019t you just make do with one polling station? No, it would go against guidance, replied the beleaguered councilman. I would get in trouble for that. The Mayor threw Peter a lifeline. We really appreciate you coming along, thank you, she said. Thank you for your time, too, said Peter. I%u2019ve got the message. You%u2019re welcome to stay, or you can go, said the Mayor. I%u2019ll go, said Peter.Crane issueThe Mayor said that before Keith McLean gave his ward report, she wanted to report on a meeting she had had with the owners of the crane on the outskirts of town by the Aldi store. It was to do with noise and dust, she said, nothing to do with planning or anything else. A statement for councillors said that regarding the enforcement notice issued by the city council to remove the large blue crane by September 2025, TCUK (Tower Cranes UK) confi rm that this crane will be removed by the end of May this year.The smaller green one will be lowered when not in use. Any noise and dust created is due to the construction work taking place in accordance with the planning consent, she added.%u00a0Ward councillor%u2019s reportNow it was Keith McLean%u2019s turn. He went to the ward splitting proposal first. One of the first things I was going to raise was what Debbie said, and that is that Peter (Geary) and I will support whatever the residents want, said Keith. We will just have to wait and see what comes from the consultation.%u00a0Keith also wanted to highlight proposed changes to the %u2018Call In%u2019 procedures on various decisions taken by Cabinet members. Call In is where councillors can ask questions of the Cabinet, and hold them to account. Up to now, he said, parish councillors and town councillors can actually call in decisions, and in the recent past, you might remember that the household waste recycling proposals were called in by some parish councillors. The proposed changes, he said, would mean there%u2019s very little chance of the opposition on either side calling in. The proposal is that no town councillor and no parish councillors can call in any decisions made by the council. A number of parishes have already expressed their disgust at this proposal, and Keith added that he was feeling aggrieved too.Keith said he had had a meeting with Jade Hewitt, the chief inspector of Thames Valley Police, about a lack of vehicles that they have access to. She told him that if a car has been sitting for a few days doing nothing, she will %u2018nab%u2019 it and make it available to other offi cers. There are 17 villages in our ward, he said, and there are some great PCSOs and some great PCs but if they haven%u2019t got a car to get out in and do some patrolling, it makes it very diffi cult. She also said we will be getting some more PCs to support the PCSOs, added Keith.Annual businessThere followed a review of the council%u2019s business, %u2018the main business of the day%u2019 as the Mayor called it. They included items such as;%u25b6 Review of the scheme of delegation and terms of reference%u25b6 Appointment of Members to Committees%u25b6 Review and adopt Standing Orders%u25b6 Review and adopt Financial Regulations%u25b6 Review inventory of land and other assets, including buildings%u25b6 Confirmation of arrangements for insurance covering respect of all insurable risks%u25b6 Review of the council%u2019s subscriptions to other bodies%u25b6 Review of the council%u2019s complaints procedure%u25b6 Review of the council%u2019s policies, procedures and practices in respect of its obligations under freedom of information and data protection legislation%u25b6 Review of the council%u2019s policy for dealing with the press/media%u25b6 Review of the council%u2019s employment policies and procedures%u25b6 Determining the time and place of ordinary meetings of the council up to and including the next annual meeting of the councilThere were some queries and some discussion over these points, but they were all agreed by council members.PCSO%u2019s reportThere were no PCSOs present and no PCSO%u2019s report this month as it was going to be discussed later in the week at the main Town Meeting.Data from SIDSThe expenditure report and budget were agreed, so Deputy Clerk Rob Mugham was asked for his report on the town%u2019s SIDs (Speed Indicator Devices). The Yardley Road unit measured 26,601 vehicles at an average of 18.47mph in what is a 20mph zone. The Weston Road unit at the top of the road (traffi c travelling east) measured 52,701 vehicles at an average of 24.97mph (in a 30mph zone), and Weston Road bottom of the hill (traffi c travelling west) measured 52,894 vehicles at an average of 23.96mph (30mph zone).How long will we have the units, asked Mary Prosser. We have three units and 11 poles around the town, and we move them around permanently said the Clerk. Draft AGARThis accounting document (Annual Governance and Accountability Return) was approved for submission.Other mattersIt was noted that the Town Meeting was coming up later that week. And it was noted that the Armed Forces Day afternoon tea would take place on Tuesday 24th June.Next council meetingThe next meeting will be held on Monday, 2nd June at 7pm in the Olney Centre. If you would like to contribute to the Public Participation section at the start of the meeting or any time the Mayor deems appropriate, please contact the Town Clerk, townclerk@olneytowncouncil.gov.uk.