Councillor calls for Labour administration to 'return to more democratic and transparent path'

Conservative councillor Tim Nelson put forward the request in a motion at the council’s full meeting last week.

However, the council's Labour majority voted for it to be referred, without discussion, to the council’s scrutiny management board ‘for consideration'. The management board usually meets publicly once a year in June.

“My group supports the strong leader model of governance. This model can provide clarity of decision making, quick decisions where appropriate and theoretically accountability,” said councillor Nelson at last week’s full council meeting.

“It also concentrates power in relatively few hands. Power is inherently vicious when it is exercised by humans because humans have frailties.

“To this end the power of leader and cabinet model is militated against by the power of scrutiny of examination in public.

“Reports can be requested, cabinet members interviewed and officers questioned.”

Newport North Councillor Nelson added that when he joined the council eight years ago the two main parties were balanced. However, he added that the Labour party now have a ‘super majority’.

“This council used to have shadow cabinet briefings with the most senior officers, meeting which were candidate, comprehensive, truthful and constructive,” he added.

“Dealings between members were in many cases collaborative and scrutiny committees contained lay members who contributed non-party non-council prospective.”

Councillor Nelson added that at a recent scrutiny assembly he had been ‘harangued’ about what he could and could not debate.

He added that items were referred to as numbers so without a copy of the 47 recommendations it was ‘impossible’ to tell what was being discussed.

“It was an affront to democratic oversight,” he added.

Councillor Nelson said that he discussed the ‘alarming direction’ of the council with an outside voluntary body.

He added that the body referred him to the Local Government Association (LGA), which is chaired by the council’s leader Shaun Davies.

“It doesn’t need to be this way,” Councillor Nelson added. “The most recent environment scrutiny meeting showed a gleam of an alternative approach. Let us get outside help to review and strengthen our scrutiny processes.

“Then return to a more democratic and transparent path.”

Councillor Steve Bentley attempted to speak on the motion before being stopped by the council speaker Paul Davis.

Deputy monitoring officer Richard Phillips told members that it should be ‘referred without discussion’ to the scrutiny management board for consideration.

Councillor Davis determined that it fell within the remit of the scrutiny management board and he was seconded by Councillor Richard Overton.

Councillor Andrew Eade said that full council procedure had changed from when he was first elected to ‘reduce the challenge and involvement of opposition councillors’.

“Where we are at today, members can’t even challenge cabinet decisions let alone provide the challenge of a critical friend,” he added. “Opposition group briefings have also been removed.”

The full council then voted for the motion to be referred to the scrutiny management board, with the Labour majority carrying the motion through.

Opposition councillors, including Conservative members and opposition group leaders Councillors Eade and Bill Tomlinson voted against.