Council leader George Finch has vowed that Warwickshire County Council will continue “putting more funding and support up in the north” of the county.
His opening remarks during the full council debate on Reform UK’s first council plan reinforced changes made to the overarching strategic document between the public consultation phase and its presentation to council.
Significant sections – in some cases entire passages – of commitments were rewritten, with “direct support, investment and practical help into the towns and neighbourhoods that have been neglected for too long, especially in the north of the county” among the pledges absent from the original draft.
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This saw Councillor Finch (Reform UK, Bedworth Central) adopt a markedly different approach to that heard during debates on whether Warwickshire should have one new county-wide council or separate north and south unitary authorities when local government reorganisation takes place.
Addressing the plan’s focus on the north, Cllr Finch told fellow councillors: “One of the main things for a lot of our councillors is making sure there is fair treatment of the county.
“We have seen for years now that the north has been left behind and I think (we are) putting it first and making sure that we are working at putting more funding and support up in the north, especially in Nuneaton and Bedworth and North Warwickshire in particular.
“What we have seen since being here (is an) imbalance and we want to make sure the north has more support as it does have the most deprived people in Warwickshire, it has worse road conditions.
“We (have been) putting more support and funding that way over the past year which is changing that. Our portfolio holders are working across Warwickshire, making sure all residents are supported, but the north in particular has been forgotten about for years.
“That is why putting this plan forward emphasises a voice of the people in the north of the county, but not forgetting that there are people in the south of the county.”
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That reference to the south drew ironic cheers, with Cllr Finch fighting back a smirk as he replied: “This council has been run by southern councillors for a long time now. We have seen what the people of the north have been saying and that’s why we’re here, to represent those people as well.”
Three amendments were put forward to Reform’s plan, with the Green Party calling for climate change recognition to be reinstated alongside a focus on prioritising public transport and active travel in keeping with the council’s existing transport plan.
The Liberal Democrats sought additional emphasis on areas such as special educational needs, adult social care and children’s mental health, building on the Green Party’s requests, while also proposing greater scrutiny of the impact of Reform’s cost-cutting measures. Both amendments were rejected, yet the Conservatives succeeded in modifying Cllr Finch’s introduction to state that “the administration will not be bound by the 2019 and 2025 declaration of climate emergencies”, on the grounds that they are “no longer economically sustainable in the short term”.
Tory group leader Councillor Adrian Warwick (Fosse) maintained this was not a reversal of policy, but rather a “slight reorder of the priorities” in light of global political uncertainties.
He urged councillors to “look again when the world’s policies have settled down”, adding: “If pursuing green options is cheaper for our residents then that is what will happen.
“The world has changed. It is not as stable and safe as it was and the first thing we need to be focusing on is making sure that people can afford food and fuel.”
The scrapped pledge to “being a great employer” was also brought up once more by Councillor Nicki Scott (Green, Warwick South).
“We are not focusing on our staff at the moment,” she said.
“That means we have retention problems, absence problems and we are not attracting the best talent to this council.”
Portfolio holder for customer and localities Councillor Mike Bannister (Reform UK, Nuneaton Abbey) contended that a recent staff survey “doesn’t support the view constantly put forward by the opposition, that somehow staff morale is on the floor”.
“It is not on the floor. You’re putting it on the floor by continually raising the issue,” he insisted. This followed his disbelief at political opponents attempting to reshape the council plan.
“Let’s be clear about this, this is not your council plan, it is the administration’s,” said Cllr Bannister.
“We don’t agree with the issues you are bringing forward. We are bringing forward a well-balanced, grounded council plan for residents, offering them value for money and concentrating on those areas that we hear about on the doorstep every day.”
Cllr Finch looked towards the Liberal Democrat benches and proclaimed “I think someone in this chamber has lost the plot” in response to criticism that he did not listen to the debate, dismissing claims about climate change as “nonsense” and accusing rivals of not paying attention to the financial hardship some residents face.
Green group leader Councillor Jonathan Chilvers (Leamington Brunswick) came in at the end to say: “I very clearly did talk about people struggling to put food on the table.
“You very explicitly said I didn’t, and another of other people talked about the difficulties people have in feeding and eating.
“Please don’t say things that are not true.”
Reform’s council plan, including the Conservative amendments, passed by 31 votes to 24, with Liberal Democrat, Green, Labour and Whitnash Residents councillors all voting against.
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