Friday, 14 July 2017

RBKC CABINET CULTURE CHANGE? IMPOSSIBLE?



This, from the Kensington Society, was sent to all councillors.
Appropriately, it was sent out on Bastille Day.

The letter raises historic questions.
Kicking Nick Paget-Brown is all very well BUT.....

....the rot set in when Merrick Cockell became leader. For twelve long years Cockell, or Pooter as he is known to his very few friends, ran the Cabinet as if it were a Masonic lodge.
Standing up to Pooter meant banishment to the nether regions.
The fact that he was notably thick besides being deeply unpleasant was another major obstacle.

The Dame believes change is not possible with the current Cabinet system in place; the KS and ALL residents associations need to campaign for two innovations:

* Reversion to the Committee System to kill off the rotten current system
* Encouragement of Independent candidates to stand at next year's election

They might also think of putting up their own sponsored candidates.......

The Dame and friends have identified nine candidates ready to stand on independent tickets.

There are sitting councillors who are picking up £13,500 for doing bugger all.
It may seem little but if you are doing little it's jolly nice!




Dear Members,

The following letter was sent to all councillors on the 3rd July.  Elizabeth Campbell, a councillor since 2006 and a cabinet member since 2010, who returned from her sabbatical, was selected.  Where we hope that as the new leader she can as we stated “will not be to close doors but to open them; someone who can engage both with all sections of the local community”, this week she will select the cabinet.

A few facts:
  • RBKC has 18 wards, 14.5 are in Kensington, 3.5 in Chelsea (Brompton and Hans Town is split);
  • There are 50 councillors.  10.5 in Chelsea and 39.5 in Kensington (if you split Brompton and Hans Town in half).
  • Chelsea has 21% of borough’s councillors and Kensington has 79%. 
  • The cabinet has 10 members;
  • The current cabinet has 6 from Chelsea and 4 from Kensington;
  • Chelsea has 60% of the cabinet.   South verses north.
  • One councillor has been a ward councillor since 1964, several since the 1980s, many since the 1990s.

We ask you to write urgently to your councillors, copy to the leader and request that the new leader takes this opportunity to establish a new beginning with cabinet members which can and will guarantee a genuine culture change and that the appointments be proportional to the borough.

The Kensington Society
14 July 2017

 

9 comments:

  1. Chelsea has 11 Councillors (21% of the total) and Kensington has 39 COuncillors (79%). But the current Cabinet includes 60% of Chelsea Councillors!!!

    A perfect representation of Cllr Campbell's Sloane Square dinner party set. "Darling, I am so busy with North Kensington".

    This needs to be blown out of the water. Anyone who heard the silly woman on BBC radio this week being forced to admit that she had never visited one of the Council's Tower Blocks (even though she has been in the Cabinet for six years) cringed with embarrassment.

    Hornton Street is currently a very bad joke.

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  2. What a crass suggestion from the Kensington Society. Typical armchair pontification that they are becoming famous for. The reason for the Cabinet imbalance is that there is only one Tory Councillor in North Kensington - Cllr Eve Allison.

    One out of ten for effort, Kensington Society.

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    Replies
    1. Silly Puff Puff. But not quite as silly as the Kensington Society. The Dame has given us the answer to representation from Kensington, and especially North Kensington. It is called the Committee System. The Cabinet system must be scrapped.

      Problem is - maybe Cllr E Campbell ("Holland Park School cost nothing") is too thick to figure this out.

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    2. Independents or an elected Mayor of Kensington and Chelsea a much better answer.

      Delete
  3. Even the Kensington Society has figured out that things need to change

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  4. Their letter includes a minor error-there are 4.5 wards in Chelsea-but it is correct that there's been an imbalance since 2000 and it actually got worse under Paget-Brown with 5 members of the Cabinet either representing Hans Town or Royal Hospital.

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  5. Labour could not have chosen a better Leader for the Kensington and Chelsea Tories. It is only a matter of time. A short time.

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  6. Large 'Justice for Grenfell' posters have appeared at strategic, well frequented places. A resignation of the Council. I guess, the whole lot. As it should. All of the Councillors are implicated in one way or another; they all had to vote for things to happen. So, they are all guilty by association. You can be prosecuted if you are mere by-stander(allegedly).
    Is it too long to the next elections? Maybe. If yes, proper group of Commissioners should be appointed to be 'caretakers' in absentia, as it were. Or, perhaps have extra-ordinary local by-elections, which may require central government approval. Loathe to issue, as it may mean a healthy Bi Bi to the Tory managed/ruined Borough. In the meantime, the Sec of State, who I think may have the powers, should halt all applications relating to building, or perhaps all; appoint the National Audit Office to thoroughly audit/investigate all of them. The application process, the proper notifications, time frames (some quite 'iffy'). Proper report should be issued and made PUBLIC. Too much to ask? May be? Possible to do? Yes, if there is a will to do so; and that is the biggest hurdle of them all.

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  7. Interesting that RBKC sent out the voter register confirmation forms this week, the last were sent in April a couple of weeks before May called the election are they preparing for possible resignation of council and a very early election? We don't usually get 2 in such quick succession.

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