MUSICAL CHAIRS

The last time Desborough held ‘All out’ elections for the Town Council was on the 7^th May 2015.  Local people elected 11 Conservatives (3 of them didn’t live in the Parish) and 1 UKIP representative to fill the 12 seats on the council.  All of them subsequently resigned.

In all there have been 16 resignations since May 2015.

LOCAL DEMOCRACY

Over the past twenty years, on average, only one third of the Parishes in the Borough of Kettering have held elections in each four year cycle but in Desborough we always have contested elections and this is good for a healthy local democracy.

THE COST OF DEMOCRACY

In future local people will have to pay towards the costs of elections and by elections through the Parish Precept. This was decided at a meeting of the North Northamptonshire Shadow Executive Committee on Thursday 24th September 2020 where it was resolved that –

‘The Shadow Executive Committee advises the town and parish councils in Kettering Borough that they should precept for the possibility of election costs arising in May 2021, and that future by-election costs will also be borne by them where these are triggered after 1st April 2021.’

The full report can be found at – Document.ashx (northamptonshire.gov.uk)

Just an early example of levelling up (or levelling down) whereby costs will be passed on to Parish and Town Councils when the new North Northants Unitary Council kicks in.

PAY AS YOU VOTE

How much will a by election in Desborough cost in the future?

The cost to local taxpayers is expected to be around £5,000 for Loatland and £4,500 for St Giles.