Councillor Jim Robbins went to Calais to meet refugees, he working with Swindon Calais solidarity group to bring aid to the people..Pic - Jim Robbins.Date 19/11/15.Pic By Dave Cox. COUNCILLOR Jim Robbins does – as it turns out – have the authority. Having said at the start of Monday night s online scrutiny committee meeting that he didn’t want any Handforth Parish Council vibes”, the chairman and Labour councillor went on to lay down the law. His comment followed coverage of a parish meeting in Cheshire which went viral last week and made an overnight star of its clerk, Jackie Weaver.
Swindon s Lib Dem leader Stan Pajak In a council chamber polarised between the ruling Conservatives and opposition Labour groups – and sometimes quite rancorously at that – Stan Pajak is often a lone voice calling for co-operation. Coun Pajak, who represents Eastcott ward in the centre of Swindon, is the leader of the two-councillor group for the party. Not only does he find himself somewhere between the two groups ideologically and politically, he can be heard frequently calling for councillors to do more together. And this year, possibly ironically because of a very acrimonious split in the Conservatives, the veteran of local politics might have a bigger chance than ever before to be the glue between differing council wings.
Labour group leader Jim Grant is hoping to end the Conservatives’ stranglehold and wants Swindonians to learn the lessons of 2020 The leader of Swindon’s Labour opposition hopes the lessons of 2020 will be remembered by people in Swindon – and says the past 12 months have shown the importance of community. Looking forward to the 2021 local elections scheduled for May, councillor Jim Grant first looked back over the last year. He said: “2020 was a year unlike any other I can remember. Yet in the midst of the Covid crisis so many people in Swindon and across the country have worked tirelessly to care for our loved ones, to keep shelves in shops fully stocked and have contributed in a multitude of other ways – I want to pay tribute to them.
Oliver Donachie and Emma Faramarzi have formed the Independent Tories and will look to shift the balance of power in May’s local elections There will be a potentially very significant new factor in May’s local elections in Swindon – assuming they go ahead. The Independent Tories, a two-councillor group made up of former Conservatives Oliver Donachie and Emma Faramarzi, are aiming to be fielding candidates in every marginal ward. And if that happens then it s possible they could affect the Conservative vote – and potentially bring about a change in administration for Swindon Borough Council. De facto leader Coun Donachie said: “We are here to provide a credible alternative to people who feel the Conservative group led by David Renard is failing the people of Swindon but they do not wish to vote for the Labour party to do so.
What does 2021 have in store for local politics? ALED THOMAS gazes into his crystal ball. IF there’s anything to learn from 2020 (apart from where the mute button is) then it s not to make predictions. But here we are, looking ahead to the next 12 months in Swindon local politics and government. There are two massive variables which will influence how voters and councillors look back a year from now – but nobody can say for certain how both Covid-19 and Brexit will pan out this year. Swindon has just been moved up to Tier 4 restrictions along with the majority of the rest of England, with Wales doing something similar – essentially a repeat of the national lockdown conditions which applied in March and April and May.