Cumberland Council met for its full meeting on Tuesday 14 July at the Civic Centre in Carlisle. It was a busy agenda, with several items — including three notices of motion — carried over from the Council’s May meeting, which had run out of time before they could be reached. Here is a summary of the parts I was most closely involved in.
Standing up for residents on the cost of living
I was pleased to propose a Liberal Democrat motion, seconded by my colleague Councillor Roger Dobson, calling for stronger support for Cumberland residents through the continuing cost-of-living crisis. The motion highlighted the particular pressures on our rural and off-grid communities — including the many households here that rely on heating oil or LPG rather than mains gas, and are left entirely outside the protection of the energy price cap.
Among other things, the motion called on the Council to keep promoting its Crisis and Resilience Fund and Heating Oil Support Fund so that help reaches the households most at risk, to bring forward a Cost-of-Living Action Plan, and to press the Government for action on energy, food and transport costs — recognising that rural residents often have no realistic alternative to running a car.
I spoke in favour of the motion, but I’m sorry to report that it was not carried, with Labour councillors voting against and Conservative councillors abstaining. I think that was a real missed opportunity to send a united message on behalf of Cumberland’s residents, and it is something I will keep pushing on.
Other motions
Two further motions were debated. A Conservative motion on tackling so-called “dodgy shops” — premises involved in the sale of illicit tobacco, counterfeit goods and other unlawful trading — was amended by the Labour group, and the amended version was carried. This is an issue that matters right across Cumberland, and I’ll be keen to see the commitments followed through.
A Green group motion proposing a ban on the release of sky lanterns and balloons on land owned or managed by the Council — on animal welfare, environmental and fire-safety grounds — was also debated. The Liberal Democrats voted in favour, but the motion was defeated, with Labour councillors voting against.
My questions to the Executive
As usual, I also put a number of written questions to the Council’s Executive members — this time on missed bin collections and service reliability, and on the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET). The full questions, and the answers I received, are set out in a separate post: Answers to Questions.
Council Procedure Rules
Finally, the report recommending changes to the Council’s Procedure Rules — part of the ongoing review of the Council’s constitution — was again deferred to a future meeting, having also been held over in May. I hope this can be brought back and concluded before too long.
As ever, if there is anything I can help with, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
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