CURRENT ISSUES:
Members of the Parish Council are pleased to announce that the Parish Council has been granted Quality Parish Council Status.
It is one of the smallest Parish Councils in the country to be awarded this status and Members are now keen to seek benefits from this award
Letter in response to Government proposals for Local governmnt reorganisation in Cheshire
Twemlow Parish Council 15.06.07
Unitary Structure Consultation Team
Communities & Local Government
Zone 5/E8
Eland House
Bressenden Place
London SW1E 5DU
Dear Sir/Madam
Re – Unitary Council Proposals: Cheshire
At its meeting on Wednesday 9th May Twemlow Parish Council decided unanimously to support Cheshire County Council’s proposal for a single unitary council for the whole of Cheshire.
The single unitary council scheme proposed by Cheshire County Council has scored more highly against the Government’s own criteria than any alternative bid/s and the purpose of this letter is not to rehearse all the arguments again other than to state that the Parish Council accepts and endorses the County Council’s arguments. TPC believes one strong unitary council for Cheshire will indeed save money, help keep Council Tax down, cut and streamline bureaucracy, improve and integrate services, cut confused lines of accountability, give more influence to localities and also help keep the County prosperous and safe.
Crucially, from the PC’s point of view, the County’s pioneering work (with a broad range of stakeholders) in developing a proposed network of Area Committees in readiness for a Single Unitary solution provides a framework within which Town and Parish Councils throughout Cheshire can play an enhanced role. It will deliver more influence to localities and encourage real ‘Community’ and ‘Local Government’. If the Government opts not to adopt the Single Unitary proposal, the opportunity to put the plan into operation will be lost and such an outcome would contradict the whole tenor of Government pronouncements in this context.
Despite boundary changes over the years the historical County of Cheshire goes back far beyond the pattern of local government established at the end of the 19th century. There is a distinct cultural atmosphere here and a quality of life deemed by many to be quite special. The rationale for regionalization and Cheshire’s inclusion in the North West is understood. However, the ‘Two Unitary Councils’, for example, ignores Cheshire’s long and close relationship with Wales and The Marches, Shropshire in particular together with Staffordshire and Derbyshire in the south and east.
The Two-Council proposal would make Cheshire little more than two extended suburbs for Manchester and Liverpool. Despite commuter patterns such a crypto-functionalist and simplistically economistic approach ignores the qualitative aspects mentioned above. The overwhelming opposition throughout the County to the proposed merger of Cheshire Constabulary with Merseyside Police was a clear indication of the population’s view of the kind of County identity to which they subscribed. There is a particular blend of rural and urban life here which many believe to be rather unique – and worth preserving.
Twemlow Parish Council is convinced that under the Single Unitary Council proposal advocated by Cheshire County Council, Cheshire can remain economically viable, socially vibrant and governmentally effective for the future. It provides the optimum framework for efficiency in service provision while facilitating local representation and accountability. It makes a reality of ‘Community’ and ‘Local Government’ for the people of Cheshire for the new century. It has the Parish Council’s wholehearted support.
Yours faithfully
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If you wish to raise an issue, please do so during a meeting (see meeting dates) or by contacting one of our councilors.
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