West Oxfordshire lost by Conservatives to No Overall Cont

Sat 7 May 2022, 17:19

For that matter people using charlbury station park in residential streets. Just before Covid I got the train to Oxford in the evening, walking along Park Street to the station a car parked just in front of us and a woman got out with a case on wheels. We walked faster than her, but she got on the London train in front of us and didn't get out at oxford. 

Sat 7 May 2022, 11:36

Try getting the bus to Witney with two children - 14 pounds! It's ridiculous that the only people who get free bus travel are the wealthiest demographic in West oxfordshire i.e. retired people. 

Sat 7 May 2022, 10:59 (last edited on Sat 7 May 2022, 11:30)

It currently costs about £7 to get the bus to Witney whereas the subsidised parking is free – and this in a climate emergency. Plenty of other district councils support bus services (it’s been legal since 1968!) and it would be good to see WODC doing so.

The other big hope I have for the new administration is that they will sort out the Community Infrastructure Levy mess. The previous administration proposed that the developers of the big new estates shouldn’t have to make any significant contributions to funding infrastructure around the district. When I was on the Town Council, we organised a joint letter from town/parish councils across West Oxfordshire opposing this, signed by Witney, Chippy, Eynsham and others. I’m particularly pleased to see that the (Labour) Witney town councillor who worked with us on this has now been elected to WODC.

Sat 7 May 2022, 10:35

Claire is of course right, and on-street parking is a County Council issue.

As I understand the issues in Woodstock, residents in the town centre are keen to have the very limited parking there available more easily, which creates an obvious challenge as there isn’t enough space.  The Tories ran a single-issue campaign opposing the charges which are currently out to consultation….. and lost, even more heavily than usual.

Last year’s losing former Tory candidate parrots their party line, which has been to fabricate a plan to charge in the car parks the District Council owns, and then when other parties say they are committed to keep parking in those car parks free, to repeat the lie.  It is fundamentally dishonest, and the lies reflect on those who continue to spot them.  
As a campaign tactic, too, it clearly backfired.  Mr Morris clearly hasn’t yet taken in his brother’s result in Witney East, which was the biggest Labour majority there I can remember.

Sat 7 May 2022, 08:49

Free car parks are a completely different issue as obviously they aren't stopping anyone parking outside their own home. I like the free parking, but personally I would prefer to see free buses and free swimming for children.

Sat 7 May 2022, 00:18 (last edited on Sat 7 May 2022, 00:20)

There was a consultation for parking charges in Woodstock. Woodstock is in West Oxfordshire. The county council are currently reviewing the responses to see if they should prepare a report for the Cabinet Member for Highway Management at a meeting scheduled for 26th May 2022. 

I don’t think it’s unreasonable for people to suspect, if the result of the report recommends implementing charges, those in power would look to expand the scheme. Parking charges can earn a council some money, even if it is a modest tariff. Why wouldn’t they? 

Some people may not realise that off-street and on-street parking come under different councils responsibility. County do on-street, off-street is district. And the scheme in Woodstock is only looking at on-street charges under the County Council. This said, if the same parties controlling County are joining force for West Oxfordshire, I couldn’t blame someone for worrying and wouldn’t say people stating free parking is at risk are telling lies, the evidence is there. 

But I am sure the next year or two will tell. I do hope your right Gareth and free parking remains. I am certainly in favour of it. 

https://www.change.org/p/keep-free-parking-in-west-oxfordshire

Fri 6 May 2022, 20:57

Ah yes, the secret plans for car park charges.  At least a dozen people were gullible enough to fall for that lie.

Fri 6 May 2022, 20:33

Will be interesting to see how much the council tax goes up AND what it will be spent on. The council have already (albeit still under Conservative control when planned) put a bank of electric vehicle chargers in the New Street car park in Chippy (at least half a dozen) and nobody wanted them there in the first place. I think there may be a handful of Chippy residents with an electric car. its a bit like the electric bike scheme here when do the locals get a say on how money is spent. It will also be interesting when people get up in arms on here when you have to start paying to park in Witney and other places

Fri 6 May 2022, 19:36

Andy Graham set to be leader of the council according to the Witney Gazette!

https://www.witneygazette.co.uk/news/20120090.lib-dems-plan-west-oxfordshire-district-council/

Fri 6 May 2022, 10:28

Of the three Independents, one was elected as an independent; a former Conservative councillor who has now joined the Reform Party, Reclaim Party, or one of those.  He was elected due to opposition to the North Witney development in the Local Plan.  Another quit the Tories at the start of the year over the conduct of the Prime Minister; he has said he will rejoin when Johnson is gone.  The third left Labour and is, as I understand, a Corbyn supporter.

Mike makes an interesting point which Chris Tatton will be able to answer better than I.  After the 1994 elections there was, briefly, a time when Lib Dem and Labour councillors were able to hold sway and effectively controlled the council.  There were one or two genuine Independents who did not follow the Tory whip; many of the “Independents” paid a sub to the Tory party and voted with them in exchange for their seats not being contested.

Fri 6 May 2022, 10:05

As I understand it (rightly or wrongly!), the "Independents" are essentially "plain-clothes Conservatives" in terms of voting habits, so those results mean an "anti-Conservative" majority of three! Is this correct?

Fri 6 May 2022, 09:45

Gareth. a question for those of us who've been here for less than 25 years:

Between WODC's invention in 1973 and 2000, the records show it was mostly run under No Overall Control, but that most of the district councillors called themselves Independents. Elsewhere, "Independent" often just meant "Conservative really, but don't blame us for the policies the party's advocating at Westminster" Conservative opponents used to refer, scathingly, to "Con-Dependents"

Today, the maths seem to show that, if they can agree to a power-sharing deal, the anti-Conservative parties (Lab, LibDem and Green) on WODC would push the Conservatives into opposition. 

Isn't this the first time in its history WODC has been in this position?

Fri 6 May 2022, 09:10

For the first time since 2000, no party has a majority on WODC.

The council is now 20 Conservatives (down 7 on the pre-election position), 15 Lib Dems (up 5), 9 Labour (up 1), 2 Greens (up 1).  3 Independents remain.

Among the curiosities thrown up by the results were majorities of 3, 4 and 5 votes and a Liberal Democrat gain from Conservative elected as Labour (who didn’t stand)…