Thursday 19th October 2023 was the second full council meeting of the current council term. This article will share our perspective on the meeting.
The Conservative Group were happy to support a number of agenda items throughout the meeting. Item eleven was the Public Space Protection Order and has a specific target of tackling nuisance vehicles which are a blight on our local communities, this work started under the previous Conservative administration and we are pleased to see that the current executive are as keen as the previous administration to tackle this issue. We also supported Item twelve which was the Annual Review of School Place Strategy and we were pleased to see this pass unanimously in the council, this makes it easier for children in Medway to get the high quality education that they deserve. We were also happy to see Item fourteen pass which made contactless facilities in Taxis compulsory. It was our view that this would increase safety for those taking Taxis in Medway. Taxi firms have also demonstrated an eagerness for this to come into practise in the near future.
However, we will not be afraid to hold Medway Labour and Co-Operative Group to account. We were concerned around a number of items on the agenda such as Item thirteen, the Adaption of Outdoor Events and Fees Charges. We find it unfair for small organisations and charities to have to pay a non-refundable fee to the council in order to use outdoor spaces. Several of our members spoke passionately against this Item but due to the makeup of the council the Item was passed. Cllr Doe, former portfolio holder for the area, spoke passionately on this matter.
We were also against Item fifteen, Amendment to the Capital Programme which Cllr Gulvin spoke against, arguing that removing Medway Development Company funding from the Capital Funding Programme removes it from the public domain and all commitments to regeneration in Medway should be readily available to the public. The view of the item was supported by Cllr Lammas who was concerned about the removal of Members’ Priorities from the capital budget. He articulated the view from the wider group that there is a concerning amount of retraction of funding for projects at local and ward level as well as the worrying trend beginning to emerge in favour of higher amounts of bureaucracy rather than resident focused localism.
As a group we were disappointed to see the break down of communication and understanding between the council and the Lordswood and Walderslade Litter Picking Group and it was for this reason we put forward a motion which we hope would see the Group restart their efforts with the support of the council. We were pleased to see our motion pass with very minor amendments. We hope that the executive will engage with not only the Lordswood and Walderslade Litter Picking Group but other voluntary groups across our towns.
With regard to the motion put forward by the Labour and Co-Operative Group we were happy to put forward an amendment which would have addressed the concerns regarding the incorrect figure of a 91% cut to funding to Medway Council. Our Amendment put forward the case that Medway’s core funding power had actually increased from £183 million in 2010-2011 to £243 million in 2023-2024 under a Conservative led Government, whilst calling for more money for children and adults services. It came as no surprise to us that this was voted down however, we were pleased that we dispelled the myth of the 91% funding cut to the council in the public domain.
We look forward to the next meeting on 25th January, where we will continue to hold the administration to account.
