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Local Government
Rochford District Council
Rochford District Council
Cllr Mrs G A Lucas-
14 Somerset Avenue
Rochford
Essex
SS4 1QA
01702 543 142
07990 526 422
To return to the Rochford District Council front page, please CLICK HERE
To see Jill’s introductory interview in 2010 please CLICK HERE
To see Jill’s follow-up interview in 2011 please CLICK HERE
To see Jill’s planning interview in January 2012 please CLICK HERE
To see Jill’s introductory interview in 2010 please CLICK HERE
To see Jill’s follow-
Post Election Blues?
Talking with Councillor Gillian Lucas-Gill following the recent Council Elections
(10th May 2012)
Less than two weeks ago the District Council elections were held. We let the dust settle, then went and talked about the experience with Councillor Gillian Lucas-Gill who has just been re-elected for a second four-year term. Over the past eighteen months we have tried to bring you many of the facets of the life of the Council and this seemed too good to miss. How does a Councillor get there? What do they have to go through? What do they feel all about it? Jill shares.
RL: Jill, first of all, congratulations on your re-election. No doubt you are very busy so thank you for your time.
Jill: Well just before the elections it does slow down for the Council, because we have so much to do with the election, and this week is supposed to be a bit of a respite week, but it hasn’t in reality. Then it all starts again next week when it’s decided who will do what, who will be on the Executive and who will be on what committees.
RL: How does that process work? Does Terry automatically continue as leader of the Council?
Jill: No, he’s done four years and so after four years we as a Council vote for a leader again. Assuming that Terry continues to lead, he then chooses the Executive, he chooses the Chairmen and Vice-Chairmen of committees and then everybody else decides what they would like to do and puts their names forward for each committee. If there are too many names for one committee, for instance, then it would be down to a vote of the Council. We all also vote for the Vice-Chairman of the Council because last year’s Vice-Chairman becomes Chairman. That all takes place at a special meeting that we have next Monday evening.
RL: With the Conservative block having a very large majority, not much is likely to change is it?
Jill: Probably not but in all fairness, Terry is very strict at making sure all the other parties are involved. The Review Committee is always chaired by somebody outside the ruling party, which makes it fairer.
RL: So what do you feel about the elections?
Jill: Well I think the big disappointment of the elections was the turnout; it was awful.
RL: Do you think it is more to do with national politics than it is local politics and that people are basically just tired out with politics, especially in the present economic climate?
Jill: I think people probably are and I appreciate that, unless you are in it like we are, it doesn’t have the effect upon you that perhaps it should do, but I just think that it would be good if everybody came out and voted, but 22.2% is appalling. It’s never high in any election but this was terrible.
RL: So what do you put it down to?
Jill: I don’t know. It just seems that people are apathetic about so many things these days; they always want their say but just don’t come out when it counts. Maybe some people use it as a protest but, really, I don’t know. I mean I’ve had people say to me, “I’ve always voted Labour all my life but I’ve been absolutely sick of the way they’ve left the country and so at the last election I voted Tory, but they’ve taken my pension” and other things that aren’t factually right, and so there are terrible results across the country. We must be one of the few councils that retained all our Conservative seats.
RL: Do you think that that contributed to your result? You had a pretty close run with your competitor this time round.
Jill: Yes, 35 votes. I think a lot of people did use it for that. We deliberately, in local elections, never use national policies because we can do very little about them, so we always try to keep to local issues but, yes, national stuff did come up. Of course our opposition played on the fact of the police station being closed in Rochford. They are still in consultation until the 19th of this month when a final decision will be made but it is the Police not us who makes that decision. It’s a new set of people and we’ll have to wait to see how it works out. They are very enthusiastic but we’ll have to see in reality what happens, but it is just part of the cut-backs that the national economy is forcing on us.
RL: I‘ve heard negative comments about the Council permitting night flights from the airport. Would that influence voters?
Jill: I don’t think so. Right at the start of the airport consultation process we did have a few negative letters but most of the negativity came from places like Leigh. Since it’s been up and running I’ve had more people saying, “Oh, it’s fantastic to be able to be able to fly from there.” To be honest, I haven’t noticed adverse noise from the airport; it’s seconds isn’t it and you get used to it so quickly. I’ve only received one complaint. What would you prefer, the airport with good access for us abroad and lots of new jobs, or lots of new houses over there and loads more cars, because that’s what would have happened to it; it would have been a new housing estate or a factory estate. I’ve lived in Rochford for most of my life and for me, it’s just an airport and if you choose to live near an airport you cope with it. So, no, I don’t think the airport had any effect on the election.
RL: OK, the important thing is that you’re back. Do you hope you’ll be able to pick up the reins where you let off on the Executive?
Jill: Yes, I hope so. I’ve only done it for a year and I’d like to carry on because it take a while to get into it. I absolutely hate all this business to do with elections. I know lots of people in Rochford but I cannot bear knocking on doors. I always feel I’m begging. It takes up so much time and you have to pay for it yourself, you have to do loads of printing, design it all yourself and then get it out to three thousand homes and then the day of the election is a twenty two hour day. It’s terrible. They start at five and we like to cover all the polling stations all day long, but it was so slow with the low turnout. The count started at ten in the evening but the count went very quickly because of the low numbers so we were actually home by two in the morning.
RL: I know we’ve touched this question before in the past, but it raises the question, does it matter that nearly 80% of the local population are just indifferent, leaving you to just get on with the job?
Jill: Yes, I think it does matter because we like to get feed-back from people and I think it is important that people get involved in some measure because, after all, we are spending their money. If they were involved, I think they would understand it more, because so often people speak out about things they don’t know anything about. There has been a spate of letters in the Evening Echo about the Wine Bar at the bottom of West Street, all saying why did Rochford Council let that happen? We didn’t want it, we turned it down, but they went to appeal and won, and when someone does that, we have no recourse. I also wish people could understand how hard it is when the Government says you will find this amount of savings. You reach a point when you can’t save that without cutting back on services. We’ve been very lucky in that we haven’t really had to cut back services as such and we haven’t made any staff redundant, but everything is cut to the bone ad we won’t be able to carry on doing that for ever. Everything has to be looked at with those sums of money and you just wonder how many more times we can do that, and where are we going to find it from next, so watch this space! I do like it. I do moan and groan and wonder every day why I do this when people expect you can wave a magic wand and make things right and so often that’s just not possible, but, yes, I do like it!
RL: Well, Jill, thank you so much. I realise you are very busy and won’t take up any more of your time. Have a good four year ahead! Thank you again for giving us your time and sharing so openly.
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Talking with Councillor Gillian Lucas-
Less than two weeks ago the District Council elections were held. We let the dust settle, then went and talked about the experience with Councillor Gillian Lucas-
RL: Jill, first of all, congratulations on your re-
RL: How does that process work? Does Terry automatically continue as leader of the Council?
Jill: No, he’s done four years and so after four years we as a Council vote for a leader again. Assuming that Terry continues to lead, he then chooses the Executive, he chooses the Chairmen and Vice-
RL: With the Conservative block having a very large majority, not much is likely to change is it?
Jill: Probably not but in all fairness, Terry is very strict at making sure all the other parties are involved. The Review Committee is always chaired by somebody outside the ruling party, which makes it fairer.
RL: So what do you feel about the elections?
Jill: Well I think the big disappointment of the elections was the turnout; it was awful.
RL: Do you think it is more to do with national politics than it is local politics and that people are basically just tired out with politics, especially in the present economic climate?
Jill: I think people probably are and I appreciate that, unless you are in it like we are, it doesn’t have the effect upon you that perhaps it should do, but I just think that it would be good if everybody came out and voted, but 22.2% is appalling. It’s never high in any election but this was terrible.
RL: So what do you put it down to?
Jill: I don’t know. It just seems that people are apathetic about so many things these days; they always want their say but just don’t come out when it counts. Maybe some people use it as a protest but, really, I don’t know. I mean I’ve had people say to me, “I’ve always voted Labour all my life but I’ve been absolutely sick of the way they’ve left the country and so at the last election I voted Tory, but they’ve taken my pension” and other things that aren’t factually right, and so there are terrible results across the country. We must be one of the few councils that retained all our Conservative seats.
RL: Do you think that that contributed to your result? You had a pretty close run with your competitor this time round.
Jill: Yes, 35 votes. I think a lot of people did use it for that. We deliberately, in local elections, never use national policies because we can do very little about them, so we always try to keep to local issues but, yes, national stuff did come up. Of course our opposition played on the fact of the police station being closed in Rochford. They are still in consultation until the 19th of this month when a final decision will be made but it is the Police not us who makes that decision. It’s a new set of people and we’ll have to wait to see how it works out. They are very enthusiastic but we’ll have to see in reality what happens, but it is just part of the cut-
RL: I‘ve heard negative comments about the Council permitting night flights from the airport. Would that influence voters?
Jill: I don’t think so. Right at the start of the airport consultation process we did have a few negative letters but most of the negativity came from places like Leigh. Since it’s been up and running I’ve had more people saying, “Oh, it’s fantastic to be able to be able to fly from there.” To be honest, I haven’t noticed adverse noise from the airport; it’s seconds isn’t it and you get used to it so quickly. I’ve only received one complaint. What would you prefer, the airport with good access for us abroad and lots of new jobs, or lots of new houses over there and loads more cars, because that’s what would have happened to it; it would have been a new housing estate or a factory estate. I’ve lived in Rochford for most of my life and for me, it’s just an airport and if you choose to live near an airport you cope with it. So, no, I don’t think the airport had any effect on the election.
RL: OK, the important thing is that you’re back. Do you hope you’ll be able to pick up the reins where you let off on the Executive?
Jill: Yes, I hope so. I’ve only done it for a year and I’d like to carry on because it take a while to get into it. I absolutely hate all this business to do with elections. I know lots of people in Rochford but I cannot bear knocking on doors. I always feel I’m begging. It takes up so much time and you have to pay for it yourself, you have to do loads of printing, design it all yourself and then get it out to three thousand homes and then the day of the election is a twenty two hour day. It’s terrible. They start at five and we like to cover all the polling stations all day long, but it was so slow with the low turnout. The count started at ten in the evening but the count went very quickly because of the low numbers so we were actually home by two in the morning.
RL: I know we’ve touched this question before in the past, but it raises the question, does it matter that nearly 80% of the local population are just indifferent, leaving you to just get on with the job?
Jill: Yes, I think it does matter because we like to get feed-
RL: Well, Jill, thank you so much. I realise you are very busy and won’t take up any more of your time. Have a good four year ahead! Thank you again for giving us your time and sharing so openly.
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