Baroness enters battle for Masham at next month’s election

The owner of Swinton Estate in Masham has thrown her hat into the ring to be one of 90 councillors elected to North Yorkshire Council.

Felicity Cunliffe-Lister, whose formal title is Baroness Masham, has put herself forward as an independent candidate when voters head to the polls on May 5.

She will stand in the Masham and Fountains division against Conservative Margaret Atkinson, who has held the division for nine years, and Liberal Democrat Judith Hooper.

All three candidates have spoken to the Stray Ferret this week.

Conservative: ‘My priorities are the community and the countryside’

Conservative Margaret Atkinson has represented Masham and Fountains on North Yorkshire County Council for nine years and Fountains and Ripley on Harrogate Borough Council for 20 years.

Ms Atkinson, who lives in Kirkby Malzeard, said abolishing the two councils for the new unitary authority was a “brilliant idea” because it would devolve more power and funding directly to local communities.

 

 

She said her priorities would remain the same:

“My priorities have always been the community and the countryside. They are two huge issues for this rural area.”

Ms Atkinson, who lives on a farm, said she was concerned about the closure of rural schools and the impact of high house prices on young people, as well as by the ageing population and the state of roads.

She said she had been “fighting for these things” constantly and the lack of progress in some areas was down to “shortage of money” from national government. She felt the devolution agenda would make it easier for the new council to take decisive action.

Asked what set her apart from her rivals, she said it was her long-term commitment to local causes and her deep roots in the community:

“I have always lived in this area. I went to school in this area and did my children and grandchildren.”

Independent: ‘I feel like I’ve got a lot to give’

Felicity Cunliffe-Lister has owned the Swinton estate with her husband Mark since 2000 and the couple have spent the past two decades building up the business.

But she says the time is right to do something different and to help others in the rural community.

 

 

 

She said:

“I have been running a business now for over 20 years with around 150 members of staff.

“I feel like I have got quite a lot to give and have some great experience.”

Ms Cunliffe-Lister said retaining young people in rural areas and improving standards of services elderly residents were key issues for the new council.

“I feel that we have to do everything we can to improve young people’s opportunities.

“I want young people in this area to feel engaged in their rural communities. I do think there is a lot to be said to draw in all the resources that we have. Businesses for example, they are a great resource.”

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She described loneliness, particularly among older people in rural areas like Masham, as a “simple but profound issue”.

A lawyer from Devon, Ms Cunliffe-Lister has been a governor at Masham Primary School for four years, a trustee at Masham Almshouses, a charity that provides housing for those in need, and has also served on charity boards in Ripon and the north east.

Her goals, if elected, include improving “faith in the system” and finding something tangible from the government’s “levelling up” agenda. She said:

“I would like to feel that if I was elected there would be a level of engagement that they [the residents] do not feel is there at the moment.”

Ms Cunliffe-Lister also highlighted more immediate issues, such as fixing potholes.

Despite being new to the political arena and heading into a campaign without a team, she said she felt ready to “get out there”.

Liberal Democrat: “passionate about openness and community”

Liberal Democrat candidate Judith Hooper and her husband have a smallholding of 11 acres that they are rewilding.

She worked closely with councillors during her career as a GP and director of public health in Kirklees. Most recently she helped at covid vaccination centres

Her priorities are engaging with communities to understand their issues and addressing inequalities.

 

 

“I am appalled by the lack of contact with local councillors since moving into the area eight years ago.”

Her priorities are: holding regular public meetings rather than “taking votes for granted”, getting fair planning decisions and “tackling the climate crisis and thus fuel issues and increasing fuel poverty”.

She added she wanted to see more opportunities for activities for young people and to see what could be done to address the playground flooding in Masham.

“Probably above all, I am a Lib Dem because I’m passionate about openness, communities working with local people and the environment

“Our house is moving towards being carbon neutral by ground source heating and having planted nearly 4,000 trees and shrubs ,which help to offset some of our carbon emissions.”

Full list of candidates

Voters will head to the polls on May 5 to elect councillors to the new North Yorkshire Council, which will replace both North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council.

The Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Green Party and independents have all fielded candidates ahead of polling day.

You can read the full list of candidates here.

Full list of election candidates in Harrogate district revealed

The list of candidates standing for election to the new North Yorkshire Council in the Harrogate district has been revealed.

Voters will head to the polls on May 5 to elect councillors to the authority, which will replace both North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council.

The Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Green Party and independents have all fielded candidates ahead of polling day.

Harrogate Borough Council has published a list of election agents and names of candidates. A full list of party candidates will be published today (April 6).

A total of 21 councillors will be elected from the Harrogate district as the council is made up of new divisions.

The deadline to register to vote is Thursday, April 14. You can register here.

List of Harrogate district election candidates

Coppice Valley and Duchy

Valley Gardens and Central Harrogate

Bilton Grange and New Park

Harlow and St Georges

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Stray, Woodlands and Hookstone

Fairfax and Starbeck

Bilton and Nidd Gorge

High Harrogate and Kingsley

Knaresborough West

Knaresborough East

Killinghall, Hampsthwaite and Saltergate

Oatlands and Pannal

Boroughbridge and Claro

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Spofforth with Lower Wharfedale and Tockwith

Pateley Bridge and Nidderdale

Ripon Minster and Moorside

Ripon Ure Bank and Spa

Washburn and Birstwith

Wathvale and Bishop Monkton

Ouseburn

Masham and Fountains

Council chiefs want ‘seamless transition’ to new North Yorkshire Council

North Yorkshire residents should see a “seamless transition” of council services when a new unitary authority covering the whole county launches in April 2023, council chiefs have said.

The new North Yorkshire Council will replace the existing county and district councils – with elections set to take place on 5 May.

It will mark the biggest changes to local government in the county since 1974 and will see key services from bin collections to social care, and street cleaning to leisure centres, come under the control of the new council.

Wallace Sampson, chief executive of Harrogate Borough Council, told a virtual public meeting on Monday that the transition was now fast approaching and staff from all existing councils were working together to ensure services run smoothly from day one.

He said:

“There isn’t a lot of time to prepare for local government reorganisation and the new authority coming into force from 1 April 2023.

“All eight councils are really working hard to make sure the transition to the new North Yorkshire Council is as seamless as possible.”

The restructuring is linked to a devolution deal for North Yorkshire which could get millions of pounds in funding, more decision-making powers and an elected mayor by 2024.

The government had stipulated a key requirement of any deal was for the current two-tier councils system to be replaced by a single unitary authority.

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The aim is to streamline structures and save money, with some of the savings coming from a reduction in senior staff including the eight current chief executives.

Paul Shevlin, chief executive of Craven District Council, told yesterday’s meeting that another aim is to “keep the local in local government”.

He said each of the seven districts – including Craven, Harrogate, Selby, Scarborough, Richmondshire, Hambleton and Ryedale – would each still have a local council office under the reorganisation plans.

Mr Shevlin said:

“We need to look after not just the most vulnerable, but everybody in our society so a local office is going to be crucial.

“Some of the judgements on day one will be: Did you notice a difference? Could you access your local council?

“If the answer to those is yes, then we will have made a successful immediate transition.

“After that comes the transformation.”

Mr Shevlin also said six local area constituency committees were likely to be created on the new council – with 15 councillors on each given decision-making powers over services including licensing and planning.

In total, 90 councillors will be elected on 5 May to serve one year on North Yorkshire County Council before transitioning to the new unitary authority for a four-year term.

Mr Shevlin added:

“This really is the most important election in North Yorkshire since the last local government reorganisation in 1974.

“Please make sure you are registered to vote, and please do vote.”

A series of virtual events are being held this month for residents to find out more about the new North Yorkshire Council.

For more information go to www.northyorks.gov.uk/new-council-virtual-roadshows

Harrogate Tory leader attacks Lib Dems for using Dundee printers

The leader of Conservative-run Harrogate Borough Council has attacked the local Liberal Democrats for using a firm in Dundee to print a leaflet urging people to ‘buy local’.

Richard Cooper criticised the move in a post on the Community News website run by Andrew Jones, the Conservative MP for Harrogate and Knaresborough. Cllr Cooper is employed by Mr Jones as his office manager,

It is a sign that the North Yorkshire Council election campaign is hotting up ahead of the vote on May 5.

Mr Cooper said it was “critical that we use local businesses where we can”.

According to the post, other local Liberal Democrat literature has been printed in York and Chesterfield.

Cllr Cooper said:

“It is critical that we use local businesses where we can and there are a lot of good local printers who would have wanted this business.

“It really is strange to call on others to ‘buy local’ when you are buying from York, Chesterfield and even Dundee!”.

Cllr Cooper, who has said he will not be seeking re-election next month, also said the leaflet’s ‘greener’ agenda was at odds with its creation.

Carbon footprint

He said:

“Even if they didn’t want to use local printers for some reason was it really necessary to go 60-odd miles north of Edinburgh? The carbon footprint of their literature is enormous.

“When you tell people you want to ‘buy local’ and ‘be greener’ you have to match your actions with words.”

The post said all election campaign leaflets published by Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservatives were printed in Harrogate and Mr Jones’ annual reports were printed in Knaresborough.

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Pat Marsh, leader of Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats, told the Stray Ferret that the Conservatives “should really have bigger things to be worrying about than where we print our material”, such as spiralling energy bills, the fallout of war in Ukraine and “businesses feeling the bite of Brexit”.

Cllr Marsh added:

“This is a particularly strange attack from the Conservatives who, during the pandemic, took £10,000 of grants to pay for their office.

“We think these grants should have been used to support local businesses, not on political party campaigns. Since they print a lot of their material at their office many people will be questioning whether their taxpayers money is helping to fund Conservative election leaflets.”

She added that the Liberal Democrats’ process for using outside suppliers was to “try and get the best value for money”, which was “something Conservative-run Harrogate council could learn from”, adding:

“They spent £5,000 on a giant snow globe that was displayed in London for two days over Christmas and £700 on social media influencers. This is on top of the £13 million they wasted on a council office for a council their own government is abolishing.”

 

How the Harrogate district’s wards will change ahead of local election

When voters in the Harrogate district head to the polls on May 5, the wards they fall into will look very different.

Twenty-one of the 89 councillors elected to the new North Yorkshire Council will be from the district.

Currently, councillors elected to Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council represent 57 wards – 40 on the borough council and 17 on the county council.

So the new wards will be much bigger and there will be far fewer in total. Each one will average 6,194 residents to one representative.

The cull of councillors has led to allegations that the district will be under-represented on the new North Yorkshire Council

But ruling Conservatives on the current North Yorkshire County Council argue the new authority will be more efficient and that the new boundaries could be subject to change in five years time.

What are the new wards?

The Harrogate district will have 21 seats on the new council.

Of that number, 13 are in Harrogate and Knaresborough with the remaining eight covering Pateley Bridge, Masham and Ripon.

Harrogate itself will have nine wards, while Knaresborough will have two and Boroughbridge a single seat.

The changes to boundaries have seen seats such as Starbeck merged with Fairfax and Hookstone and Woodlands now joins the Stray to form a new ward.

Meanwhile, Bilton have two seats with Bilton and Nidd Gorge and Bilton Grange and New Park.

In Knaresborough, the town will be divided into Knaresborough East and Knaresborough West.

The full list of wards

Harrogate and Knaresborough ‘considerably underrepresented’

The proposal for the wards was signed off by the government as part of the Structural Changes Order in January.

However, Philip Broadbank, a Liberal Democrat councillor on both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, attempted to change the boundaries after criticising them as underrepresenting Harrogate and Knaresborough.

He said:

“In my view, it makes this largest urban area in the county considerably underrepresented on the new authority.”

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Cllr Broadbank submitted a fresh proposal, which would have reduced the average resident to councillor number from 6,194 to 5,329 – which is the number seen in other districts. However, this was rejected by the government.

However, Conservative Cllr John Weighell, who led the working group on the council boundaries, told Cllr Broadbank previously:

“I do accept underrepresentation, I always have, but I think this is absolutely the only way to maintain community identity.

“Of the 18 Harrogate and Knaresborough members currently in the borough council area, 16 are twin-hatted and that says everything really.

“Some people are saying ‘we can’t represent that number of residents’ – but they are doing it already.”

The new arrangements will stay in place until 2027 when the Boundary Commission will carry out a full review.

Across North Yorkshire, there would be 89 councillors serving the county’s 600,000 population.

This would be a higher proportion of representatives than the 99 that serve Leeds’ 800,000 residents, but a lower proportion than the 126 councillors who serve County Durham’s 425,000 population.

Dispute over Harrogate council by-election raised in House of Lords

A dispute over the decision not to hold a by-election in the Harrogate district has reached the House of Lords.

Following the death of Conservative Cllr Normal Waller at the end of January, Harrogate Borough Council has announced a by-election will not be held in Marston Moor.

The ward includes the villages Tockwith, Cattal and Bilton-in-Ainsty.

The council said a routine election was due to take place within six months of Cllr Waller’s death, meaning a by-election would not be needed.

Norman Waller

However, that election has since been cancelled, as all existing HBC councillors have had their terms extended by a year while the new North Yorkshire Council is set up.

Confirming the decision, the council said:

“As a matter of law when a casual vacancy arises within six months of the date for the ‘ordinary election’, then the casual vacancy is to be filled at the next ‘ordinary election’. For this reason, a notice of vacancy stating the election for Marston Moor would be on May 5 was published.

“However, local government reorganisation and the Structural Changes Order has changed this by cancelling the Harrogate Borough Council ordinary elections on May 5 and extending all serving Harrogate Borough Council members’ term of office until April 1, 2023 at which point Harrogate Borough Council will be dissolved as part of unitary re-organisation.

“Having taken legal advice and consulted with the Association of Electoral Administrators we cannot see any way forward for the election to fill the vacancy at Marston Moor ward.”

However, the decision has been criticised by former councillor Arnold Warneken, who was intending to stand for the Green Party in the by-election.

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Mr Warneken highlighted the inconsistency with Wathvale ward, where a by-election is set to be held on May 5 following the retirement of Cllr Bernard Bateman. He said:

“I’m not at all happy with the situation that Harrogate council have allowed the residents of Marston Moor ward to end up with, which is that as a result of the death of my friend and colleague, former district councillor Norman Waller, we would all expect there to be a by-election but for reasons beyond me this is not the case, and we will be without an elected representative for the next 13 months.”

House of Lords

Now, the issue has been raised by Baroness Natalie Bennett of Manor Castle in the House of Lords.

Baroness Bennett, a former leader of the Green Party, submitted a question to the government on Wednesday about its correspondence with HBC about holding a by-election in Marston Moor after the planned local elections were cancelled. The government has two weeks to provide a response.

Harrogate Borough Council yesterday reiterated that its decision about Marston Moor was made before the planned elections for the district were cancelled. The decision to hold a by-election in Wathvale was made after this date.

The by-election for Wathvale takes place on Thursday, May 5. It is the same day that voters across North Yorkshire will go to the polls to elect their representatives for the new county-wide unitary authority.

Over the next year, work will take place to set up North Yorkshire Council ready to take over from the existing county council and seven district councils, including Harrogate, next spring.

Labour announce Harrogate and Knaresborough election candidates

The Labour Party has announced its candidates in Harrogate and Knaresborough for the upcoming local elections.

Voters will head to the polls on May 5 to elect councillors to the new North Yorkshire Council.

A full list of candidates for each ward including Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Green Party and independent candidates is expected to be published on April 6.

The Labour Party has announced a candidate for every ward in Harrogate and Knaresborough.

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Among them include acting constituency party chair Chris Watt, retired teachers and a mental health nurse in the NHS.

The full list of candidates are:

The move comes after opposition parties indicated they are not expected to agree to a pact ahead of polling day.

Harrogate and Knaresborough Green Party said it had reached out to both the Lib Dems and Labour, however the Stray Ferret understands no agreement has been made.Labour’s list of candidates indicates it intends to fight every ward.

Register to vote

A total of 13 councillors will be elected in Harrogate, Knaresborough and Boroughbridge to the new authority, with an average of 6,194 people to each representative. A further eight will be elected across Ripon, Pateley Bridge and Masham.

Those wishing to vote in the upcoming election have until April 14 to register to vote. You can register here.

Meanwhile, events will be held online for residents across Harrogate and Knaresborough to learn more about the upcoming unitary council.

People will be given the opportunity to ask a panel of senior council officials about the changes and what it means for them.

Wallace Sampson, chief executive of Harrogate Borough Council, and Neil Irving, from North Yorkshire County Council, will appear on the panel at the event on April 12. You can find more information on how to attend here.

Bid to retain Ripon Spa Baths for community use fails

Ripon Spa Baths is set to be sold to a commercial developer after a bid to retain the building for community use failed.

Harrogate Borough Council, which has owned the Edwardian building since the reorganisation of local government in 1974, has confirmed that it intends to sell the Park Street property to the unnamed commercial bidder.

Ripon City Council successfully applied for for the building to be listed as an asset of community value in September. This meant it had six months to raise the finance to purchase the building to keep it in commercial use. But time has now run out.

The city council also called this month for the ownership of the Grade II listed building, which was used as a swimming pool until it closed in November, to be transferred back to Ripon without charge when Harrogate Borough Council is abolished next year.

Ripon councillors argued that Spa Baths and other city assets, including the town hall, Hugh Ripley Hall, Market Square, Spa Gardens and Spa Park, should be handed back for free by Harrogate Borough Council as it had not paid a penny for them.

Photo of civic society plaque on Ripon Spa BathsThe building is recognised as a key heritage asset by Ripon Civic Society

But Harrogate Borough Council’s response to Ripon City Council’s request for the reversion of ownership, seen by the Stray Ferret, confirms the building will be sold to a developer.

Trevor Watson, Harrogate Borough Council’s director of economy and culture said in the email, which has been circulated to all city councillors:

“As you are aware we are selling Ripon Spa Baths because a brand new pool has been built in Ripon and this building is no longer needed.

“Our main objective through this disposal is to ensure that the building continues to be used in future and supports the sustainability of Ripon City Centre. To achieve this objective we have undertaken a comprehensive sales strategy which generated market interest in purchasing the building.

“The preferred bidder can demonstrate the experience, capacity and capability in bringing buildings back into use. In addition the proposed sale to the current preferred bidder will generate a capital receipt.

“The generation of capital receipts for assets that are no longer needed allows significant investment to be made in new assets, such as the new Ripon Pool.”

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Mr Watson added:

“At its meeting on 13 October 2021, Harrogate cabinet have previously agreed to dispose of the building to the preferred bidder.

“As the building is listed as an Asset of Community Value a moratorium period was initiated and implemented where the council has not been able to dispose of the building, now that this period has expired we will execute this decision.

“We believe that this will deliver the best way of ensuring the future, sustainable use of this asset and enable Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Council to continue to invest in the continuous improvement of Ripon City and its neighbourhoods.”

No deals expected between Harrogate district opposition parties ahead of election

No pacts are expected to be made between opposition parties in the Harrogate district ahead of the May local elections.

Voters will head to the polls in just under six weeks time to elect councillors to the new North Yorkshire Council.

Harrogate and Knaresborough Green Party said it had reached out to both the Liberal Democrats and Labour to discuss a deal to unseat the Conservatives.

However, the Stray Ferret understands that no agreement has been made and that the Lib Dems and Labour are expected to field a candidate in every ward.

Shan Oakes, of the Harrogate and Knaresborough Green Party, said the party had invited opposition groups to come up with a deal.

She said:

“We have invited Labour and the Lib Dems to talk to us.

“Between us, we hope we can get somewhere.”

(Left) Chris Watt, acting chair of Harrogate and Knaresborough Labour Party and Shan Oakes, Harrogate and Knaresborough Green Party.

(Left) Chris Watt, acting chair of Harrogate and Knaresborough Labour Party and Shan Oakes, Harrogate and Knaresborough Green Party.

It follows the Green Party and Liberal Democrats striking a deal in July 2021 when the Greens stood down a candidate and called on supporters to vote for the Lib Dems in the Knaresbroough Scriven Park by-election.

‘We do not agree to any deals’

However, Chris Watt, acting chair of the Harrogate and Knaresborough Labour Party, said the party will be standing a candidate in every ward on May 5.

He said:

“We do not agree to any deals.

“We will be putting forward our case on the doorstep.”

Mr Watt added that the party will be campaigning on housing, public transport and working with police to tackle anti-social behaviour.

Some of the new North Yorkshire Council ward boundaries in Harrogate and Knaresborough. Picture: NYCC.

Some of the new North Yorkshire Council ward boundaries in Harrogate and Knaresborough. Picture: NYCC.

Meanwhile, Philip Broadbank, who currently represents the Liberal Democrats on both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, said it was up to individual candidates to make their case.

He said:

“All we can do is get around as much as we can and get the issues raised.

“We have all got to get out there and press our case.”

The Lib Dems are also expected to field a candidate in every seat with a campaign focus on housing, green policies and transport.

Conservatives hoping to hold onto power

Meanwhile, local Conservatives are hoping to increase their share of councillors at the upcoming elections.

Harrogate and Knaresborough Conservatives currently hold power on Harrogate Borough Council with 28 seats and hold 14 on North Yorkshire County Council – which is also in overall Tory control.

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Nick Brown, who is a Conservative councillor on the borough council representing Bishop Monkton, said the party was confident ahead of polling day.

“We are very positive and well prepared

“On the doorstep we’ve been explaining what the new authority is going to be about. It is going to be more efficient and it is going to save money.”

Local Conservatives have agreed their list of candidates, which will be published along with other parties on April 6.

Register to vote deadline

A total of 13 councillors will be elected in Harrogate and Knaresborough to the new authority, with an average of 6,194 people to each representative. A further seven will be elected across Ripon, Pateley Bridge, Masham and Boroughbridge.

Those wishing to vote in the upcoming election have until April 14 to register to vote. You can register here.

Meanwhile, events will be held online for residents across Harrogate and Knaresborough to learn more about the upcoming unitary council.

People will be given the opportunity to ask a panel of senior council officials about the changes and what it means for them.

Wallace Sampson, chief executive of Harrogate Borough Council, and Neil Irving, from North Yorkshire County Council, will appear on the panel at the event on April 12. You can find more information on how to attend here.

Speculation mounts over Harrogate independent candidates after website set up

A new website has fuelled speculation that a wave of independent candidates is being lined up in Harrogate ahead of local elections on May 5.

The website, called Time for a Change, has been shared widely on social media and outlines various planning decisions, publicly-funded projects and traffic schemes in the district made by both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council.

It includes references to contentious decisions such as housing developments in the Kingsley area and the ongoing Harrogate Station Gateway project.

However, nobody has yet claimed responsibility for the site. There is also the possibility that the new movement could backfire by splitting the opposition vote.

Harrogate Residents Association has been vocal in its criticism of many council schemes and has called for independent candidates to put themselves forward on polling day.

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But Anna McIntee, co-founder of the association, denied the group was behind the Time for a Change site.

The Time for a Change website, which has been set up and details decisions made by Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council.

The Time for a Change website.

However, she added the association supported its aims and wanted to see “fresh” candidates on the ballot paper.

Ms McIntee said:

“We are hoping there are some independent candidates to vote for because we want to see change.

“People are fed up. There is nothing fresh. People need to ask: ‘do we want more of the same?’”

Nominations open

Nominations have opened for candidates hoping to become one of the 90 councillors on the new North Yorkshire Council.

Candidates will have until April 5 to put their names forward. Confirmation of those standing for election will be published on April 6.

A total of 13 councillors will be elected in Harrogate and Knaresborough to the new authority, with an average of 6,194 people to each representative.

Meanwhile, those wishing to vote in the upcoming election have until April 14 to register to vote. You can register here.