“On March 30, the Council announced via a press release that “the time is right to reintroduce parking charges”. This has taken many residents and businesses by surprise. Can the Chairman of Policy and Resources Committee please explain exactly why he believes “the time is right to reintroduce parking charges” and why he failed to seek views from other Members before agreeing such a sensitive public announcement?”
Minutes:
To Councillor Clark, Chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee, from Councillor Delaney:
“On March 30, the Council announced via a press release that “the time is right to reintroduce parking charges.” This has taken many residents and businesses by surprise. Can the Chairman of Policy and Resources Committee please explain exactly why he believes “the time is right to reintroduce parking charges” and why he failed to seek views from other Members before agreeing to such a sensitive public announcement?”
Councillor Clark, Chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee, replied:
“Thank you, Councillor Delaney. I think this is a perfect example in answer to Councillor Oxley's question. I have, and the Officers were, delivering Council's policy to have free car parking until the end of March. And this Council and anything I have to do with P and R while I'm the Chair will deliver decisions that are made by this Council, not as a matter of press releases. The press release was in fact announcing what Full Council had decided so as to reduce the number of people, residents and businesses that were taken by surprise. It was to remind them of Full Council's decision. And as for not consulting with people, I fail to see how you can have better consultation with Members than having a decision made by those Members in Full Council. It wasn't a fireside chat. It was a full blooded, Full Council decision.”
Councillor Delaney then asked the following supplementary question:
“Thank you Councillor Clark. I'm actually pleased that I can ask you a question on a matter that you do have control over. So hopefully, we'll get a substantial answer this time. Circumstances obviously change and there had been a huge change from the last Full Council to the end of this policy which nobody could foresee. So the question I would ask you is that if you, as Chairman of Policy and Resources, if there are any substantial changes on sensitive public announcements, will you be willing to discuss and confer with other Councillors before making such sensitive announcements? Thank you.”
Councillor Clark, Chairman of the Policy and Resources Committee, then replied:
“Thank you. I'll take it one step further than that. I have requested that rather than the Leader have a monopoly on what happens and what is in press releases, I have asked that all, as far as possible - and some press releases have to go out with no notice at all because they’re a request from the press or there’s a crisis happened – all Group Leaders will be informed of forthcoming press releases on the previous Friday to them going out. And on that basis, those Group Leaders will be able to inform Members of their Group what is coming up in press terms. It certainly won't be policy decided by press releases. The Communications Officers in the Council were delivering the decision of Full Council. But I will be consulting around by asking for all those press releases coming up to go to Group Leaders of all Groups.”