Fury after plans for thousands of new houses in Hucknall debated for just 15 MINUTES to spark rules review

Campaigners against proposals for the picturesque Whyburn Farm have collected more than 7,600 signatures against the Ashfield Local Plan.

The document was included for ‘debate’ on the agenda at a full meeting of Ashfield Ashfield District Council last week. But regulations dictated councillors could only speak for a combined total of quarter of an hour.

Further frustration has been voiced after only three councillors were selected by the chairman to speak – all of whom were from the ruling Ashfield Independents, who have put the plan together.

Hucknall Labour councillor Lauren Mitchell said “democracy had been squashed on purpose”.

Coun Lee Waters, who represents Hucknall North, was one of those fortunate enough to have been selected to speak at the meeting.

Now, in his role as chairman of the council’s standards and personnel group, he has told the Dispatch that his committee will be addressing the council’s constitution.

Coun Waters said: “I was as surprised as anybody that the debate over the Government-enforced Local Housing Plan was restricted to 15 minutes.

"To be honest, I could have spoken for an hour about my opposition to arbitrary housing targets set out by the Conservative Government. This was the first time a petition such as this was discussed at full council since my time as a councillor.

"Bearing in mind the strength of feeling in towns like Hucknall, the debate did feel somewhat curtailed. Every year my committee looks at the council’s constitution and I am pleased to say that we’ll be looking at petitions and the debate surrounding them as part of this review.”

Earlier this week, Hucknall’s Coun Chris Baron (Con) spoke to the Dispatch about his feelings surrounding the meeting.

He says he was refused the opportunity to speak despite, as he says, having his hand raised first. He says this was later corroborated by the chairman.

There was also a failed bid to eject him from the meeting.

Coun Baron says it was clear that “democracy wasn’t being done” after no opposition councillors got the opportunity to speak.

However, Coun Waters has stated that he doesn’t regret only Ashfield Independent councillors speaking.

He said: “Maybe councillors like Chris Baron could be more alert. Councillors Shaw, Wilmott (Hucknall Ashfield Independents Dave and John) and I were champing at the bit to have our say.

"The reality is that, under the current system, councillors have to catch the chairman’s eye. That’s what we did and I am not surprised, bearing in mind the opposition from Hucknall’s Ashfield Independent councillors, that we got in first.

"That said, we need to look again at the rules that restrict massive petitions to only 15 minutes debate.”

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