13 REVIEW OF GWYNEDD COUNCIL'S ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS PDF 79 KB
To submit
the report of the Deputy Leader (attached).
Additional documents:
Minutes:
The Deputy Leader presented a report inviting the Council to respond to
the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission's draft proposals for the review on
electoral arrangements for Gwynedd Council.
During the discussion, the following
observations were noted:
·
That the Commission's draft proposals went against the recommendations of
this Council and the community councils.
·
Concern about combining some wards - the Chief Executive confirmed that
he would present a strong argument to the Commission against two member
constituencies.
·
Concern that the timetable for a response to the Commission's draft
proposals was very tight.
·
Lack of clarity about what had been agreed about the Abersoch
Ward and some other wards and, in light of this, it was suggested to refuse the
Commission's report in its entirety. The Chief Exectuvie
responded that refusing the report was not an option, and the only other choice
was to confirm the original proposals presented before the Commission in June
2017. However, the recommendation to
hold discussions with the local members in the places where the local members
considered that it would be prudential to propose an alternative option, would
give members in these areas a better outcome.
·
Concern that including Llanfrothen within the Tremadog Ward would mean that the new ward would include
parts of four different communities and would bridge the Dwyfor
and Meirionnydd areas.
·
Some of the Commission's proposals did not take the natural boundary
between wards into consideration.
·
That the Commission's proposal to keep the Dyffryn
Ardudwy Ward as it was and to combine the Llanbedr
and Harlech Wards was better than what had been
originally put forward by the Council, which was to combine Dyffryn
Ardudwy with Llanbedr. The Chief Executive responded
that if the members felt that some of the Commission's proposals were better
than what the Council had presented, that the Council's proposals could not be
pushed so strongly, but that the discussion needed to be had.
RESOLVED
(a) That
the Council agrees to respond by re-stating the Council's proposals and
pressing on the Commission to accept what was in our original proposals, but
authorising the Chief Executive to hold discussions with local members in the
places where the local members consider it would be prudential to offer an
alternative option, and to authorise the Cabinet to include this alternative
option in the formal response if all local members are unanimous in their
opinion.
(b) That
the Council authorises the Cabinet to suggest different names for wards to what
is in the Commission's proposals, if there is a local desire to do so.
13. REVIEW OF GWYNEDD COUNCIL'S ELECTORAL ARRANGEMENTS PDF 79 KB
To submit
the report of the Deputy Leader (attached).