Chipping Norton Times - Issue 4/5 - January-February

THE LOCALISM BILL
The Government published the Localism Bill on 13 December.
The Bill aims to shift power from central government back into
the hands of individuals, communities and councils, and will
provide greater recognition of the role of local (community,
neighbourhood, parish, village and town) councils along with a
range of new powers..
Key points of the Localism Bill include:
• a new power for local people to approve or veto excessive
council tax rises through a local referendum, but with the
intention that the majority of local councils will fall below
the level set by the Secretary of State;
• a right for local councils to challenge a local authority by
expressing an interest in running any service for which they
are responsible – this also applies to voluntary and
community groups, social enterprises and local authority
employees delivering a service);
• the chance for communities to buy a local community asset
when it comes on the open market, developing a bid and
raising the capital
• measures to give people, councillors and councils the power
to instigate a local referendum on any local issue;
• a new general power of competence to provide local
authorities – including certain local councils – to enable
them to do anything apart from that which is specifically
prohibited;
• freeing up councillors to be able to campaign, to express
views on issues and to vote on issues within their
communities, without fear of being unjustly accused of
having a closed mind on a particular issue;
• the abolition of the Standards Board regime and a new duty
on local authorities to promote and maintain high standards
of conduct, including provision for the adoption of a
voluntary code of conduct;
• changes to the Community Infrastructure Levy including
provisions requiring some of these funds to be passed to
neighbourhoods where the development has taken place;
• a new right for local councils to shape their local areas
through neighbourhood plans which will enable
communities to permit development – in full or in outline –
without the need for planning applications;
• the power for communities to take forward development in
their area without the need to apply for planning
permission, subject to meeting certain safeguards and
securing 50 per cent support of the community through a
referendum.
An essential guide to the Bill has also been produced setting
out the thinking that underpins the Bill. The guide makes the
case for a radical shift of power from the centralized state to
local communities, and describes the six essential actions
required to deliver decentralization down through every level
of government to every citizen.
A Plain English Guide to the Localism Bill (published 11th.
January) by Communities & Local Government is available
from: www. communities.gov.uk
A copy of the Localism Bill can be found at:
http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2010-
11/localism/documents.html
The Local Government Bill recognizes the importance of Parish and
Town Councils in determining local policies and the future of their
communities. For the first time our representatives can be key players
in decisions made at district, county and even government level.
To be representative each council needs to have fully elected
members. It is imperative that nominations are received for all the
seats on our councils.
Voting for Parish and District Councillors
The term of office for a parish councillor is 4 years and the current
councillors are due to retire in May this year. This means that there
are seats up for grabs for the next term of office, so if you would like
to be involved in the community, now is the time to say so!
To stand as a candidate at the election, you must be 18 years of age
or over and a Commonwealth or European Union citizen. You must
also be able to answer Yes to at least one of the following: do you live
or work within the parish; are you included on the register of
electors; do you own or rent land within the parish; do you live within
3 miles of the parish boundary?
If you are interested in standing, you will need to contact the
Elections office at Cotswold District Council for a nomination
paper. The nomination paper has two parts; the nomination itself
includes your personal details and needs to be signed by two people
who are on the electoral register in the parish;
the second part is the consent to nomination which you must sign
and have witnessed. These forms are available from early
March and must be back with the elections office no later than noon
on 4 April 2011.
After the deadline, if there are more candidates than seats, there will
be vote on 5 May. If there are the same number or less than the
number of seats, those people are elected and the new council can
co-opt others to fill the remaining vacancies.
It is always good to have some new ideas on the council and get more
people involved in the process, so ring the elections office and get
that information now.
West Oxfordshire Council elections helpline on
01993861522/ 861525 or westoxon.gov.uk/electoralservices
District councillors face the vote too
This year we will also have the opportunity to vote for our District
Councillor. Qualifications for being a District Councillor are similar to
those for the parish except that the area relates to the district rather
than the parish and the last one (living within 3 miles of the
boundary)doesn't apply.
The nomination process is the same although you will need
signatures from 10 supporters instead of 2 at parish. More
information is available on the Cotswold District Council website
westoxon.gov.uk/electoralservices or call
01993861522/ 861525
Will you be able to vote?
If there is more than 1 candidate for the District wards, there will be
an election and we will need to vote. To be able to vote you need to
be included on the Electoral Register. To make sure you are included,
contact Cotswold District Council elections office. If you are not
included you have until 18 April to fill in the application form.
If you will be away on election ay or not able to get to the polling
station, then you can apply to vote by post or proxy. Applications
need to be with Cotswold District Council by 18 April for postal voting
and 25 April for proxy voting.
(All dates correct at time of going to print)
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