Public greeted by security guards at Parish Council meeting as independent councillors excluded

TWO security guards greeted people arriving at the latest meeting of Culcheth & Glazebury Parish Council, while two independent Cllrs. were excluded from part two of the meeting.

Now one of those excluded, Independent Cllr Neil Johnson has slammed the parish council as being “undemocratic” and urged villagers to unite against what he has described as an “anti-democracy coalition involving local Labour and Conservative councillors.

Last week, a report emerged on Facebook from newly-elected Parish Councillor Bernie Kingston, who claimed that an unadvertised meeting of some Parish Councillors was taking place at Culcheth Library, in a room where the blinds were drawn. Cllr Johnson was unaware of this meeting being convened, or its purpose. He has written to the Administrative Assistant who is currently supporting the Parish Council in the absence of a Clerk to ask for more details but, so far, received no reply.
Tensions rose at the Parish Council meeting last Tuesday at Glazebury Methodist Church, when two members of the public sought to ask questions in the Public Forum section of the meeting, but were told they couldn’t do so because the issues they wanted to raise were not on the Agenda.
Despite repeated requests from residents, the Parish Council has declined to publish or declare the cost of this year’s Christmas lights, in spite of them being paid for from public funds.
Members of the public who attended were greeted by the sight of two private security guards who had been hired to marshal the event. Cllr Johnson says he received no notification that the Parish Council was planning to hire private security, or any details of the associated costs. He has branded the move “ridiculous”.
Then, in what Cllr. Johnson describes as a “shocking” and “unprecedented” move, the Parish Council meeting was adjourned for a “Part 2” (Confidential) meeting, which he and Cllr Kingston (both Independent members) were asked to leave! Cllr Johnson has not been told what the confidential meeting discussed, or given any information relating to his exclusion.
Cllr Johnson said after the meeting: “I am shocked at the latest turn of events. The Parish Council in Culcheth and Glazebury is now a totally undemocratic body, which seems to be operating as a closed shop. Input from residents is unwelcome, and opportunities for local people to engage and ask questions are being actively shut down.
“I am completely opposed to the new format of Parish Council meetings, where questions can only be taken in a 15-minute section about items already on the Agenda by prior arrangement with the Parish Clerk. This is designed to exclude residents from raising concerns and engaging with elected representatives. I am firmly in favour of reverting to the old format, where we conducted the business of the Parish Council and then opened the floor to members of the public, who could raise any issue they wished, ask questions, and didn’t have to give notice in advance. That is proper engagement and accountability. The way two residents were treated was frankly contemptable.
“I am at a loss as to why the Parish Council refuse to publish information relating to the cost of the Christmas lights. They will not even answer questions about it.
“Hiring private security to marshal a Parish Council meeting is utterly ridiculous. Who do these people think they are? Who paid for this and when was it agreed? I have certainly never been asked.
“Finally, in a shocking and unprecedented move, the two Independent members of the Parish Council were excluded from a Part 2 (Confidential) meeting, without warning or explanation. This is not only undemocratic, it may well be illegal. This was a meeting of the full Parish Council, to which all ten members should have been invited to participate. To simply ask us to leave, without giving any hint of what was being discussed, is beyond belief.
“It is clear to me that Labour and the Conservatives have united to form an anti-democracy coalition. The two main parties are working together to try and prevent scrutiny, and are now actively conspiring behind closed doors against Independent members. Whether they agree with Cllr Kingston or I is irrelevant, we have a right to be present at Part 2 meetings and take part. I am astonished that the Administrative Assistant is party to any of this.
“The residents of Culcheth and Glazebury must unite against this affront to democracy. The Parish Council in its current form is placing self-interest ahead of the community. It is a closed shop, filled with Labour and Conservative councillors who are on a power trip at the expense of the people. Enough is enough.”
Cllr Johnson has called for the Borough Council solicitor and the Cheshire Association of Local Councils to instigate an investigation into the Part 2 meeting events, to determine upon what grounds he and Cllr Kingston were excluded, and upon whose authority.
Culcheth & Glazebury Parish Council, The local Labour group and Cllr. Bernie Kingston, all declined to comment on Cllr Johnson’s statement at this stage.