Bath and North East Somerset’s Liberal Democrat councillors have proposed the creation of a Committee for Bath at yesterday evening’s annual general Council meeting.
The Liberal Democrat amendment to the ‘Annual Business’ report called for a working group to prepare draft ‘terms of reference’ for the Council to consider at its July meeting.
Councillors from all parties spoke in support of the proposal, which was agreed unanimously by Council.
Councillor Ben Stevens, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Widcombe, commented:
“Ever since the creation of Bath and North East Somerset Council in 1995, there have been calls for a particular voice for Bath. The democratic deficit in B&NES stems from the additional layers of representation found in North East Somerset – the Town and Parish Councils – which are not present in Bath.
“We envisage that a Committee for Bath could be a Council committee with a clear role for residents and stakeholders, as is the case for other Council committees. The Committee could consider a wide range of issues from a Bath perspective and feed in advice to the Council’s policy process. In the future, this could lead to more devolution of decision-making.
“We feel this could be a very cost effective means of enhancing democracy in B&NES. The Council’s existing facilities could be used and there would be no need for an additional precept for Bath tax payers – as would be the case if we were looking into Parishing or other similar arrangements.”
Councillor Dave Dixon, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Oldfield, added: “The success of the annual Bath City Conference – another Lib Dem initiative – shows that there is a real appetite amongst the residents of Bath for a forum in which the focus is squarely on our fantastic city.”
Conservative Group Leader Cllr Tim Warren, who seconded the proposal, said: “We welcome the fact the Council has agreed to establish this cross-party group, which will be tasked with looking at ways in which civic governance and community representation in Bath can be strengthened and then bringing its recommendations back to all councillors for consideration.
“The fact that Bath currently lacks its own forum at which matters affecting the city can be debated by the city is a real issue for many residents. It is something which Conservatives consulted residents on last year, and it was clear from the results of our survey that the clear majority of people favour some sort of change so that the interests of Bath residents can be better represented on matters affecting the city.
“There are many ways in which this could be done, be it through a special committee of B&NES Council, a separate appointed body, or combination of ideas, and so we look forward to seeing the suggestions of the working group.
“Conservatives do believe residents should be given a say over any changes, so we would like to see any proposals put to public consultation before being implemented.”
