WITH Conservatives no longer holding the majority in Salisbury City Council, newly elected members have celebrated the want for change. Revealed yesterday, May 9, as part of the Local Election count, the authority is now made up of 11 Conservative, six Labour and six Liberal Democrat councillors and one Independent. Comparing to the previous Local Election result in 2017, the Conservatives have lost four seats, Labour has gained one, Liberal Democrats gained five and the one Independent seat was retained, but by a different candidate.
Infographic courtesy of Richard Johnson Following this result, Annie Riddle, newly elected councillor for west Harnham and the only independent on Salisbury City Council, said: I m very honoured that people in west Harnham have trusted me with their votes and have changed the voting habit of a lifetime to do so.
The 100-year-old Second World War veteran passed away in hospital after testing positive for Covid-19. He touched the hearts of millions last year when, during the first lockdown, he raised nearly £33 million for the NHS by walking 100 laps of his garden. Since news of his passing was announced by his daughters on Tuesday February 2, the nation and the city of Salisbury have been mourning the loss of such an inspiring individual. The Guildhall s flag has been lowered to half-mast in memory of Captain Sir Tom s life - a tribute from all those at Salisbury City Council. Leader of the City Council, Cllr Liz Sirman said: “We are all very sad to hear about the death of Caption Sir Tom Moore. At the age of 100, he lifted the spirits of the nation and was a symbol of hope during the pandemic. My thoughts are with his family during this time.”
THE city is set to miss out on more than a million pounds of funding, despite the council declaring its support for the People Friendly Streets scheme. £1.3million was being put towards the scheme by the Swindon and Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership, as long as it was spent by March 2021. But with the project indefinitely suspended, Paddy Bradley, chief executive officer of the SWLEP, has confirmed that the money will now be reallocated elsewhere in the county. The funds were due to be spent on the scheme s complimentary measures, which included improvements to Shop Mobility, refurbishing Culver Street car park, bike racks and a bike repair station.
Here is what they had to say: I don t feel it goes far enough Cllr Stephen Berry (Harnham, Conservative), said he felt the scheme did not go far enough. He also said he did not feel the motion covered the process needed to go through before a fresh proposal is considered. It was not people friendly Cllr Kevin Daley (St Francis and Stratford, Conservative), said he spoke to hotels, charity shops and other businesses around the city centre who suffered as a result of the scheme. One problem he encountered was customers at the Red Lion Hotel, who were unable to get to the hotel without a permit, which created problems for the owners of the hotel.