Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
More councillors branded ‘bizarre’
Monklands is to have extra councillors and an additional ward on North Lanarkshire Council from next year after controversial plans to increase the authority’s number of elected members were approved by the Scottish Government.
Both the Labour and SNP groups on the council had opposed the plans from the Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland (LGBCS), saying that they will not assist with the stated intention of helping to address deprivation.
Council leader Jim Logue called the decision – which the council have estimated will cost £1.5 million over five years – “absolutely bizarre” and says he had still expected it to be rejected as recently as last week, ahead of the final ministerial announcement.
It means that local voters in May’s council election will select a total of 77 councillors across 21 wards, up from the current total of 70 members in 20 areas.
Councillor Logue told the Advertiser: “There’s no justification anywhere for this increase; nobody has demonstrated that there are any unmet needs as a result of the current number of councillors and it’s disrespectful to local decision-making.
“North Lanarkshire’s unanimous submission, by all parties and independents, clearly said that there’s no requirement to increase the number of councillors – it seems utterly bizarre, at a time of austerity, that the Scottish Government has disregarded that approach.
“I’m completely surprised it’s gone ahead, as based on the strength of representations made, I thought the government would have listened and recognised it’s the wrong time to introduce anything like this as there’s no community or political support for it.
“We’re now in a non- negotiable position but this comes at a financial cost, in terms of the resources and infrastructure given to elected members; that was one of facts that all councillors advanced to retain our status quo.”
Councillor Logue added: “I’d been fairly confident, with the cross- party representations made by the working group, that the government would have recognised there was no need. I’m then left with a sense of bewilderment as this inherently flawed decision was taken – it doesn’t make sense and doesn’t particularly reflect areas of deprivation. Local government should be community-led.”
Opposition group leader David Stocks agreed: “The SNP group was consistently against these changes from the start as we don’t believe they’ll help with what they were meant to, as set out by the Boundary Commission.
“However, I feel there was a lot of pressure on the minister to put through these changes; and now we have to live with the consequences.
“We’re disappointed, and I’ve no idea how the Commission has come to this conclusion – we certainly don’t need another seven councillors and I don’t see how it will help with deprivation. The extra cost is the biggest point; there will also be space and staff needed for these extra councillors and it isn’t helpful.”
He also noted parties are already involved in their candidate selection process for May’s council elections and must now contend with changed ward boundaries and the increased number of candidates required.
North Lanarkshire’s working group chair Peter Sullivan – who, like both party group leaders, represents Airdrie Central – said: “The whole thing beggars belief. It’s outrageous that our serious concerns haven’t been listened to and it makes a mockery of having a consultation in the first place; surely local people and elected members should have their voices heard.”
Noting that changes are being made in 25 of Scotland’s 32 council areas, he added: “Despite an extensive response making our views clear, we’ve simply been ignored.
“I find it astonishing Scottish Government ministers have accepted no changes in other council areas because of serious objections and yet they haven’t taken ours seriously.”
LGBCS officials developed their proposals based on trying to improve parity in the number of electors in each ward across every council area; the number of councillors required was calculated after assessing each local authority’s population and proportion of people living in the 15 per cent most-deprived areas.
Their report on North Lanarkshire noted: “Geography placed significant constraints on ward design, particularly around Strathkelvin.We noted the council’s points as regards local ties and considered alternative proposals for 75 and 76 councillors – the options addressed only some of the issues and worsened electoral parity.
“The increase in the number of councillors proposed had been constrained by the limit on changes to 10 per cent, and [we] were reluctant to recommend a lower number.”
Parliamentary business minister Joe Fitz-Patrick said of the changes: “Local government plays an important role in delivering key services and it’s important councils are as representative as possible of the communities they serve. The Boundary Commission is legally obliged to review council wards and councillor numbers, to ensure these reflect changes in population.
“I am confident these new structures will serve Scottish local government well in the years to come.”
A lot of pressure on the minister to put through changes . . .