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How can an individual, who is politically active, divorce his Political ideologies from any role in public office, no matter the political party he or she represents?
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Joined: 10/05/2013(UTC) Posts: 6  Location: Whaley Bridge
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Most do or don't depending on how it suits them ha ha. There are some good ones though who can do it properly.
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Hi Pensionman, I guess you are referring to the article about Mr Thomas on whaleybridge.com, in which it is stated that he will be non-political in his new role as chairman of the council.
According to "Wikipedia", politics is "the art or science of influencing people on a civic, or individual level".
By this defintion it isn't possible for a councillor to be non-political. The main reason for putting yourself forward for election is presumably because you would like to influence the decisions taken by the council. The chairman has a vote and has at least as much influence as other members, so, it seems to me, the chairman's role has to be political in the broadest sense.
You may be uneasy about the chairman being a Labour candidate in the recent county council election. Myself I wouldn't worry about that. WB council only has the power to decide on purely local issues, so it shouldn't make any difference whether or not the chairman is a member of a political party.
Might draw the line at a chairman belonging to BNP though!
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Hi,
Whaley Bridge Town Council is remarkably non-political in the way it operates, and I think the point being made in the article was simply an acknowledment of this and an indication that this would continue. In some councils, you will find that progress and ideas, can be subverted by political machinations which result in stalemate or worse. Whaley Bridge is not like that.. I'd urge people to come along to the meetings to listen and see for themselves. I always found it extremely interesting when I did just this before I became a councilor, and although I agree that it can be occasionally tedious, I still find it .just as interesting today.
Cheers
Jon. |
Jon Goldfinch - Forum Administrator and Town Councillor
Whaley Bridge Town Council - Fernilee Ward
cllr.jong.wbtc@googlemail.com |
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Hi, I would like to introduce myself. I am Martin Thomas the recently appointed Chair of Whaley Bridge Town Council. I do not entirely agree with the last statement paragraph of the article announcing my appointment. While it is true that Whaley Bridge Town Council is different to many Councils in that the make up is not dominated by controlling groups, and there is no Cabinet or party whip (in fact only five of twelve members of the Council carry the label of a mainstream Party). Nevertheless, for those five members, differences between their philosophy on topics such as development control do exist, reflecting their Parties' policy on that matter. Another example was on a recent consultation by HPBC on the funding of some benefit cuts out of the general rate, I spoke in favour but the Council as a whole decided to make no comment. |
Cllr Martin Thomas
Chair Whaley Bridge Town Council
Member for Yeardsley Ward |
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Joined: 10/05/2013(UTC) Posts: 6 Location: Whaley Bridge
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Great post and hello Martin. much better to have a direct response than have us all make assumptions!
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Rank: Advanced Member
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Thank you for your honest reply Martin & good luck in your role.
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