Page 2 - Cllr Ecclestone News Today

Councillors have agreed to a round table on the Andover Special Expenses Levy and its future following a motion being brought. Cllrs David Coole and Christopher Ecclestone had brought a motion to Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) which asked for the end of the levy, and an apology to the people of the town. In response, Cllr Maureen Flood, the finance portfolio holder for the council, criticised the motion’s proposals as “inappropriate”. Following debate, Cllrs Coole and Ecclestone...

A dramatic council meeting where the clerk ejected the chair and vice-chair has gone viral. But no, it isnt Andover Town Council that has been making headlines this week but Handforth Parish Council in Cheshire. Footage of their planning meeting held on Zoom on December 10 has gone viral with thousands of viewers stunned by dramatic arguments.  In the video, Jackie Weaver sent the chairman to the waiting room after saying she had "no authority" and declaring himself the town clerk. H...

Veterans have raised “grave concerns” over a proposal to hold a referendum on moving Andover’s war memorial. Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) was debating a motion by Cllrs Christopher Ecclestone and David Coole to hold a consultation on the resiting of the memorial, with the aim of holding a referendum on the move in 2021. Cllr Ecclestone said that the proposal would “would finally, once and for all, settle this issue of where the war memorial is sited.” However, others dis...

Andover Town Council has voted to maintain its tax precept at the current level following a lengthy meeting of the full council. Councillors voted to maintain the level at £21.10 per Band D household for another year, generating just under £350,000 in revenue. This fell short of the proposed expenditure of at least £466,208 the council had planned in its budget, with the internal auditor have suggested the council consider an increase. However, following debates over a proposed new bud...

Cllr Ecclestone was one of the four AIP councillors excluded from the meeting. He called the EGM “shambolic” and said he was excluded when he asked if the insurance cover was still good if the council was found to have not followed correct procedures. Minutes after he was excluded from the meeting, Cllr Ecclestone took to Facebook to share his anger. He posted on Facebook group Politics in Andover: “Shambolic EGM meeting with Cllr Rowles excluding four of the five AIP councillors....

EGM fiasco: Cllr Ecclestone to file complaint with authorities Councillor Christopher Ecclestone said he would lodge an official complaint with the Monitoring Officer at Test Valley Borough Council and the Department of Communities and Local Government against the backdrop of EGM fiasco that saw four councillors being excluded from the meeting on Thursday. Cllr Ecclestone called the EGM “a new low in local democracy” and accused the Proper Officer and mayor of excluding him from confide...

An Andover Town councillor has accused Test Valley Borough Council (TVBC) of attempting to “thwart” a new design statement after announcing plans to redraw the conservation area. Last week, Andover Town Council put its design statement for the conservation area, which covers much of the town centre, out for consultation. The borough council subsequently announced its own consultation, which proposes removing certain areas, including George Yard Car Park, the Sainsbury’s branch on Brid...

Andover Town Council is to publish a design statement for the town centre this week following a series of delays and controversies over the plans. The statement, which will outline guidance on how to retain the character of the town centre, will initially focus on Andover’s conservation area, which runs from Andover Cemetery in the north to the South Street roundabout junction. The document will be launched online on Friday, with the public invited to provide feedback on the initial pla...

An Extraordinary general meeting of Andover Town Council saw vigorous debate between councillors over whether the outcome of a grievance panel should be heard in secret. The meeting, held on December 15, saw councillors assemble to receive the report on the grievances made by staff at the council, which saw it close for two weeks while a locum was appointed. Following the approval of new dates for council meetings in the new year, councillors debated the exclusion of the press and public ...

A local political party has appointed ‘champions’ for specific issues in an effort to engage more with these topics. The Andover Independents Party has appointed Councillor Christopher Ecclestone as the ‘Good Design Champion’ and Councillor Rebecca Meyer as ‘Adversity Champion.’ The pair will seek to address these issues at both Andover Town Council and Test Valley Borough Council, of which they are representatives on each. The party said that its leader, Cllr Meyer, was “...