The View from Shute End

Wokingham District Councillor Annette Drake reports...

Conservatives win Wokingham

The political balance at the district council changed at the local election on May 2. A total of 19 seats were up for election. The Conservatives won 14, the Liberal Democrats won four, and Labour won one. This means that the political balance changed and now Conservatives have 30 members, the Liberal Democrats 22 members, there's one Labour and one Independent member.

The Conservatives, led by Frank Browne who represents Remenham & Wargrave, have abolished the Cabinet, and replaced it with an Executive Committee of eight members. They have also introduced Champions and Policy Teams. There is a new Allowances Panel, which will consider considering the new responsibilities. Control of the Overview and Scrutiny has been offered to the Liberal Democrats. Quite a few changes have happened already and there are still many details to be put into place, which will be done at the next full council meeting on June 27.

The decision-making process will be from recommendations of the policy teams to the Executive Committee, followed by political group discussion and a vote. If agreement is reached these proposals will go the full council for debate followed by a vote. The chairman of the council is Mrs Muriel Long, the member for Finchampstead South.

The Executive Committee, which includes the leader and the deputy leader, holds responsibility for Education and Cultural Services, Environment, Planning and Transportation, Capital Programme and Assets, Community Services, Strategic Alliances, and Lead Member Special Projects. The Champions - three new posts - will deal with Best Value and Customer Care, Community Safety, and e-Government.

A monthly meeting structure has been created of an executive briefing in week one followed by policy team meetings in week two, political group meetings in week three, culminating in a full council meeting bi-monthly. It's a three-term structure with the Annual Council Meeting in May.

I am back on Development Control as vice-chairman to Angus Ross the chairman.

The Boundary Committee decision on likely ward changes elsewhere in Wokingham district will take effect in 2004 - when my term ends - which is good news as we thought we would all have to stand for election in 2003.

Development in Hurst still looms

Locally we still have the 'spectre' of the School Road application for permission to erect 25 houses on the two-acre site achieved by the removal of three bungalows and one house. We all are aware that some development will take place on this site, but it must be sympathetic to the surrounding area.

We have a good case for opposing this high density in Hurst, the lack of services and infrastructure were identified by the Inspector in his report on the Local Plan as limiting major development. But, I must remind you that the new PPG 3 [policy guidance] from central government instructs councils to make the best use of the land available for housing, and densities of 35+ per hectare are considered acceptable in some areas.

There is no firm date for determination of this application yet, but when there is I ask you all to maintain your support of the objections from the Parish Council, Hurst Village Society, residents and myself, by coming to the committee when it appears on the agenda. If it goes ahead in the present form I may have ask you to lie down in front of the diggers with me!

Finally a big thank you to all those who took part in the two days of traffic counting, really sterling work, and congratulations to HVS Chairman David Shapland who devised the plan of action and produced amazing bar charts to demonstrate the traffic problems we have already. We will only win by showing complete support for the objections to this application, which is totally out of keeping in Hurst.