Some of Kirklees’ political groups have joined forces in a bid to abolish the council’s Cabinet system, through their ‘Change Kirklees’ campaign.
Councillors from the Green Party, Liberal Democrats and Independent councillors want to see the Cabinet – which currently has eight councillors from one party voting on nearly all council matters – scrapped and be replaced with a Committee System where all elected members would play a greater role in the decision-making process.
Councillor Andrew Cooper, Leader of the Green Group said: “People expect when they elect their councillors that they will be able to vote on issues affecting local people. That is not what happens. The Kirklees Cabinet all come from the Labour Party with just 22 councillors out of a total of 69. They have less than a third of the councillors but make 100% of the decisions. That simply isn’t right and doesn’t look like democracy to many people.”
Councillor John Lawson, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group said: “The way Kirklees is run must change. A committee system is being increasingly acknowledged and adopted as a fairer system. It allows communities to have a voice in the decisions being made about them. Council decisions have to be transparent and accountable to be robust, this move aims to achieve just that.”
Councillor Jo Lawson of Kirklees Community Independents said: “The Labour Cabinet could agree tomorrow to start the process of moving to a Committee System but both Labour and the Conservatives prefer the status quo of the undemocratic Cabinet System. That is why we have decided to take the campaign to change Kirklees up with local people.
“If five percent of Kirklees Electors petition the Council then they will be compelled to hold a referendum where local people will be able to vote to change the old Cabinet system with a modern Committee System. Our intention would be to time the referendum to coincide with the 2026 Local Elections to reduce the costs of holding it.”
To trigger a borough-wide referendum, a petition of almost 17,000 signatures is needed. The Change Kirklees campaign says it will seek support from people not aligned to political parties who want to see a more representative democracy in Kirklees.
The group adds: “We want people to contact us to join the Change Kirklees campaign and help get the petition signed. We need the support of people who just want to change the way Kirklees has been run for decades.
“A Committee System will not solve all Kirklees Council’s financial problems but it will mean that when people vote for a Councillor they will at least know that they have some say over the decisions on the Council they were elected to.”
Anyone wishing to help with the campaign is urged to contact members of the Change Kirklees Steering Group:
Councillor Andrew Cooper – 07721 348619 andrew.cooper@kirklees.gov.uk
Councillor John Lawson – 07523 304778 john.lawson@kirklees.gov.uk
Councillor Jo Lawson – 07793 141695 jo.lawson@kirklees.gov.uk
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