Richmondshire District Council members, who have voted to increase the authority s environmental efforts THE frailty of a ruling Coalition group’s grip on power at a council has been exposed as a controversial swimming pool plan saw the same number of elected members vote for the move as against it. As a vote calling for further consideration of pumping a third of Richmondshire District Council’s annual council tax income into Richmond’s swimming pool was tied 12-12, chairman Councillor Clive World was forced to use his casting vote to pass the plan. The ruling Richmondshire Together group of ten Independents and three Liberal Democrats came close to its first defeat since taking power in 2019 after Conservative, Green and Independent councillors questioned whether the authority could afford spending £1.4m on overhauling the pool.