Stay-away councillors force

meeting cancellation …

NO QUORUM

NO FORUM

By now, there is surely no-one who doubts the potential perils facing Boston’s local NHS services – which is why it is so disappointing that a meeting of Boston Borough Council’s Corporate and Community scrutiny committee had to be cancelled on 21^st June because not enough councillors could be bothered to attend.
No, not disappointing.

Pathetic.

***

The meeting was due to discuss an “update” on a Worst Street task and finish group looking at the Lincolnshire sustainability and transformation plan –  STP – which the Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust claims will help ensure health and care services in Lincolnshire are developed around the needs of the local population so they are fit for the future.

Also on the agenda was a review of the council’s private sector housing policy framework – another important local issue given the numbers of houses in multiple occupation in the borough.

***

The task and finish group was set up in spring last year to consider how to develop a consultation response to the STP taking into account the views of local people and organisations – and the agenda item of 21^st June was so that members could “note the update and consider the future direction to be taken by the STP Task and Finish Group in the light of the delays in publishing proposals for public consultation, particularly those relating to acute hospital services.”

***

As we said at the outset, the precarious nature of health services in Boston makes the need for the maximum discussion and debate inestimable.

The committee has eleven members – Chairman Councillor Paul Gleeson, Vice Chairman Councillor Colin Brotherton and Councillors Michael Brookes, Tom Ashton, Richard Austin, Anton Dani, Jonathan Noble, Elizabeth Ransome, Sue Ransome, Judith Skinner and Stephen Woodliffe.

The quorum for the meeting is five members in attendance – which means that at least seven failed to turn up.

***

The lack of discussion prompted an angry reaction from local protesters fighting to retain services at Pilgrim Hospital.  

A member of the SoS Pilgrim - Call To Action group on Facebook  said…

“Thanks to those that bothered to turn up for their own Boston Borough Council Community Scrutiny Meeting last night!” wrote one angry member.

“To those elected councillors that didn't, you should be ashamed!

“Good job we are fighting for the people of our county!”

Committee chairman Councillor Paul Gleeson told Boston Eye: “It was disappointing that not enough members attended last week's Corporate and Community committee meeting.

“It’s the first time I know of a meeting being inquorate since I have been on the council.”

That’s seven years.

“Contrary to some reports we were not due to directly discuss health issues, we were looking at the future direction of the Task and Finish group set up last year to investigate the wider impact of the Lincolnshire NHS STP on Boston.

“After some good initial meetings, with the continual delays in the public consultation on the STP, our enquiry had stalled. 

“We now appear to have an STP by stealth and I had hoped we could look at widening our enquiry and getting more public involvement in our meetings.  We will discuss this at our next meeting.

“It was also a pity there was no scrutiny of the other item on the agenda – the introduction of licensing for HMOs.”

***

It could be argued that for a meeting to be called off for lack of a quorum for the first time in at least seven years was an example of a fierce historic dedication by councillors.

But it is also something that need not have happened if those involved had been better organised.

In just over 300 days – around 42 weeks – all 30 council seats in Worst Street will be up for election, and many of the councillors currently in office will be making all sorts of promises to get re-elected.

It’s something worth remembering in light of  the above debacle.

***

Still with diary dates – it’s less than six months to the New Year, which means that whatever is going to happen vis-à-vis Christmas lights in Boston will have been done and dusted.

It was two months ago that we last mentioned Christmas lights – when Worst Street was looking for “expressions of interest” from individuals, community groups and businesses and set a deadline of 14^th  May.

It’s a long-dead deadline by now – and regular readers will recall that this year, Worst Street didn’t want to put all its eggs in one basket … and defined six areas to be lit by individual and different groups.

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Since then there has been uproar from the electricians involved in last year’s project, demanding that they should have exclusive ownership of the project.

They claim to “hold” more than £15,000 worth of lights, and questioned why other bidders for the task should have to start from scratch and buy lights for a second time.

This has begged the question of who owns the lights – rather than who “holds” them.

Last year’s venture was funded principally by a BTAC-ky grant of £10,000 in match funding if the volunteer groups raised a similar amount in donations and sponsorship – and that any remaining assets reverted to Boston Borough Council once the project ended.

***

It was thought that this issue would have been resolved by now – at the BTAC-ky meeting scheduled for Wednesday 27^th June.

But the meeting was brought forward at the last minute and held on the 20^th – with no mention of Christmas.

We assume that everything now waits for another month and the 25^th July meeting.

***

But this has not deterred “The Electricians” as they now appear to style themselves pressing ahead with fund raising …

We just wish Worst Street would sort this mess out as soon as possible – otherwise Boston will become the lighting laughing stock is was  just a couple of years ago.

***

Over the years – and with complete justification – we have accused the powers that be in Worst Street of lacking the nous to organise a booze-up in a brewery.

Now they seem to be sowing the seeds for potential fiasco with a Sausage and Beer Festival in Central Park on 14^th July.

The council website urges us to: “Sit back and listen to music whilst enjoying a pint from Lincolnshire Brewing Company and locally sourced sausages from Boston.

“There will also be the judging of the best sausage from Boston, 1pm - 6pm (that’s a long time to judge a sausage - Ed) sponsored by Duncan and Toplis.

“You will be able to sample a selection of cooked sausages from local butchers.”

***

So far, so good – although we understand that the invitation to have your sausage judged by a firm of accountants and tax advisers has not been extended beyond the town centre … angering sausage makers from local towns and villages.

Then there is the quirky – to say the least – arrangement for selling tickets.

A stash of 500 was on sale for the “early bird” price of £3.50 – after which they went up to £5 … a hike of more than 40%.

But if – like many people, you prefer to see what the weather is like on the day, then  – if there is the space available – admission will cost you a stonking £10 – more than 280% of the early bird offer.

Who thought that one up, we wonder?
To make matters worse, Worst Street tweeted last week that tickets were still available – a month after the event first appeared on the council website – “for just £3.50.”
Which means that the first 500 ticktes have yet to be sold.

***

Because Worst Street looks the other way at drinking in the park when there’s money to be made, there is also an avalanche of rules and regulation tacked on to mar what might otherwise be a pleasant afternoon out.

“Families - Under 18yrs are free but must be accompanied by an adult to gain access into the event, they must not drink and will not be served.

“All under 18yrs must leave by 6pm. There will be a kid’s corner to keep little ones entertained.

“Your bags will be searched on entry to the event; no alcohol will be permitted into this event. No pets allowed; no weapons.

“You may be refused service at the bartender’s discretion.

“You will need to bring a valid ID as proof of age to gain access to this event.”

Apart from that, have fun!

***

Earlier, we mentioned the disinterest among councillors that caused a meeting to be cancelled.

At the recent Lincolnshire Show an annual tradition for years has been a chance to meet your local county councillor.

Well, bad luck if you were visiting in the hope of finding the Boston Brigade all present and correct over the two day event

 

Boston has six county councillors – five of whom are “double-hatted” in that they “serve” at West Street as well.

Of these six – only three made it to the Lincolnshire Showground … the same percentage that caused the Corporate and Community scrutiny committee to fall flat on its face.

***

Worst Street’s planning committee has been flinging developments  around willy-nilly recently – approving up to 200 new homes on a site south of Wainfleet Road   hard on the heels of approval for 61 new riverside homes at the old Haven Wharf Warehouse site.

There is also to be a new shopping development that will involve demolition of 36 Strait Bargate and 2 Wide Bargate, the refurbishment and extension of 4 Wide Bargate and building 16 shops, including a cafe and restaurants, and 15 apartments with car parking.

The site is currently the NCP car park on Red Lion Street.

Permission was given subject to an agreement to deliver affordable housing and a minimum of 12 units to be shops

  

There was the usual gung-ho response about revitalising the area and welcoming small shops to the town, and only Councillor Stephen Woodliffe sounded a voice of dissent urging councillors to err on the side of caution.

He cited the state of high streets across the nation, and added concerns that gambling businesses might move in – adding that the council was not thinking about the current decline in high streets nationally.

“Shopping itself is changing rapidly and I don’t think new shops small or large are the way forward,” he said.

Needless to say, his message was pooh-poohed.

***

It makes a change for us not to have to disagree with the decision – because one of our regular readers was quicker off the mark.

“The fact that majority of our councillors seem to think this to be a wonderful idea, only serves to show just how out of touch with reality they really are,” he wrote.

“Have they not visited the town centre of late and seen for themselves the number of empty shops, many of which have blighted the central business district landscape for some time now?

“This proposed project, should it ever go ahead, is destined to become yet another white elephant and another testimony to the inadequacy, incompetence and 'Walter Mitty like' personae of the majority of Boston's serving councillors.

“I can only think that they view any kind of new development – no matter how foolhardy and destined to failure the venture is likely to prove – as implying progress and proof of their ‘unceasing efforts’ to promote the town.

“A struggling new shopping complex will only serve as a further indication of Boston's now obvious descent to 'backwater status'.

“Not to mention the fact that this proposed 'shopping village' will be positioned right opposite the much lauded Waterfall Mall, which I would hardly describe as being the memorable shopping experience that was promised.

“Councillor Stephen Woodliffe is absolutely correct (somewhat uncharacteristically it has to be said) in his assessment, and was right to express his reservations about this mind numbing folly.”

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