CAMPAIGN: Modern Committee System - Somerset Independents' Democratic Alternative

 

Standing Up For Democracy

UPDATE (14th April 2021): Now that the district councils have finally agreed to our campaign of a Referendum on the future of the councils in Somerset, we are campaigning for whatever comes next to Somerset to be a Modern Committee System (MCS). 

An MCS has been proposed for years in Sheffield by our inspirational friends in the "It's Our City" campaigners in Sheffield. It is now being proposed in a Referendum in Sheffield. More details are here on the Sheffield City Council website. 

Somerset Independents says that any Referendum in Somerset must include a no change option and this MCS option. 

Over the next two days, we will ask all four district councils to change the Referendum to include an MCS. We will also ask them to do the Referendum when it is safe to do so, and when it allows a proper campaign to be done, so that the public can make an informed decision:

• Sedgemoor District Council today, with Denise Wyatt speaking at Full Council at 2.30pm today
  
• South Somerset District Council tomorrow morning at their Cabinet meeting, with Andrew Pope speaking. The Full Council meeting clashes with the Mendip one, so Andrew has asked for his speech to be read out at the Full Council.
  
• Somerset West and Taunton District Council tomorrow afternoon at 4pm, with Denise Wyatt speaking there - except they do not seem to want to allow her to speak, unlike the other districts - so her speech will be read out by an officer
• Mendip District Council at 6.30pm tomorrow evening
  

Leader of Somerset Independents Andrew Pope says today:

Andrew Pope

"We at Somerset Independents tried to get the district and county councils to properly listen to Somerset's residents. But they did not want to listen. So now we think they should be abolished - all 5 of them. 

What comes next must be a Modern Committee System and we will continue our campaign for it, which we started last year."

 

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10/9/2020: At tonight's Special South Somerset District Council meeting, the Leader of Somerset Independents spoke to ask councillors to amend the report before them to add a Referendum and a Modern Committee System.

His speech is below.

"Good Evening everybody. My name is Andrew Pope and I am the Leader of the Somerset Independents pressure group. When I last spoke at your Full Council, I asked you to support a Referendum on any changes to how Somerset residents are governed.

Tonight, I am asking you to amend the report to include a Referendum and a Committee System. I was pleased that some councillors such as Tony Lock and Adam Dance spoke in support of a Referendum. But at Somerset Independents, we want action as well as warm words. And to our knowledge, no councillors have taken action to support a Referendum.

Worse than that, district councillors have allowed a falsehood to be promulgated by Stronger Somerset – that a vote cannot take place due to the Coronavirus Act. That is not the case.

It was done at the request of the districts in 2007. And in 2007, 82% of residents in a turnout over 200,000 voted AGAINST a unitary. And it needs to be done again, now.

Somerset residents need to be given the opportunity to express their opinion on any and all proposals, and especially so when neither the Stronger Somerset unitary proposal nor the One Somerset unitary proposal, was suggsested by ordinary residents of our County. It was politicians that came up with these bad ideas.

There is no mandate for a unitary authority. Residents haven’t changed their minds since 2007.

You have to convince the public and have them vote. May I suggest that it is unlikely that you will be able to convince them. Which is why you don’t want a vote, but sham consultations instead!

But you HAVE TO HAVE A VOTE. And Somerset Independents has done the work for you. I have a statement from Civica, who used to be Electoral Reform Services, that says they will do it for the district councils. They’ve even provided us with a quote of £312,000. You have to do this!

Somerset Independents does not want to make you have a Referendum by getting the Verification Number of petitioners under the 2011 Regulations. You will then legally HAVE to have a Referendum!

YOU SHOULDN’T BE MADE TO BY SOMERSET RESIDENTS, YOU SHOULD DO IT BECAUSE IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO!

But Somerset Independents does not just want to criticise BOTH undemocratic unitary proposals. We have an alternative, and the Regulations allow a better alternative, and a Referendum too!

So we urge you to commit to change to a Modern Committee System, one that allows ALL councillors to make decisions, not 9 or 10 under the current undemocratic Cabinet system. They are doing it in Sheffield, they have the petition numbers. They’ve done it in other councils. Do it here!

The Committee System is more democratic, so whether it is the current councils or any successor councils, we hope that you will agree with Somerset Independents’ proposal of a committee system.

Commit to doing it now, without being forced to by the Regulations. Residents will thank you for it. Thank you for listening. 

 

Please amend the report to include a poll of residents and Committee System."