Councillor Crosby - Introduction

[Bill Crosby]

In the run up to the election, one of the promises I made was to try and keep the public informed of what I was doing, what was happening within their area and how it might affect them; this blog is one of the ways in which I hope to achieve just that.

 

On Thursday 4th May, I had the honour of being elected by the people of Bedlington East to represent them as their County Councillor for the next four years.  It cannot be over-emphasised what a momentous event took place on that day when the people of Bedlington, who felt that they were not being best served by the current party politics, dispensed with decades of traditional voting habits and put their faith in three people who they felt only had the best interests of their town at heart.

 

Since that day, I have been attending various sessions, (what I have jokingly labelled ‘Councillor School’) in which I have received training in various subjects, to include Safeguarding, Planning, Licensing and Public Protection, and there is much more to come!

 

The training was interrupted on Wednesday 24 May when I had to attend my first full meeting of the Council.  A named vote was called on the issue of local area councils and my first act was to vote against the current administration.  I did this as I felt to split Bedlington into two separate groups was wrong and, in doing so, I voted with the Labour group, hopefully dispelling the myth that I am a ‘closet Tory’ and proving that, being truly independent, I am, as promised, willing to work with anyone for the good of the town.

 

Since this meeting took place, I have now been selected to sit on four committees, which are:

 

• Licensing
• Netherton Park Governing Body
• Safeguarding and Corporate Parenting
• Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education,

 

and I am looking forward to these new challenges.

 

Regarding the issues around the Tesco site, I can confirm that there have been already been discussions with the current administration and things are looking positive.

 

I see part of my role as liaising with the local Town and Parish Councils and to that end I have attended meetings at both venues and I will continue to attend as often as I can.

 

This week, I also attended the Annual Meeting of West Bedlington Town Council, which was dominated by issues around the future of Humford dam; it is clear that there is a massive strength of feeling on this issue as people have fond childhood memories of this beautiful spot and regard it as part of their heritage and are reluctant to lose it, as so much of Bedlington’s history has already been lost.  I will be monitoring this situation closely.

 

Since coming to office, I have received requests from various sections of the community and I have endeavoured to meet those concerned face to face in order to discuss the issues and hopefully arrive at a solution; topics so far have included help with accommodation, parking and traffic calming.

 

I was also honoured this week to be asked to present a ‘Northumberland’s Finest’ award at East Bedlington Community Centre on Friday 16^th June, which I am very much looking forward to, and I will report back on this in my next blog.

 

I will always be approachable and in the near future I will be arranging venues for regular surgeries where you can drop in and discuss things with me in person, but in the meantime there is always the option of contacting me by email at: bill.crosby@northumberland.gov.uk or by telephone on: 07779 – 983656.

 

Finally, thank you for reading my first blog and I hope to keep you updated with information on future events in my next one.

 

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