Kirklees Council's new cabinet sets out its priorities for the district as it holds its first meeting
The Leader of Kirklees Council has set out the principles that will guide her cabinet, as “difficult decisions” need to be made.
Tuesday, September 8 marked the first public meeting of the council’s new cabinet, 49 days after the leadership team was appointed earlier in the summer.
Opening the meeting, Leader of the Council, Coun Sarah Wood, said: “Those first 49 days have deliberately been about getting into the detail – cabinet members receiving briefings, meeting the officers responsible for our services, understanding the pressures facing the council, asking questions, challenging assumptions and beginning to establish where we want to take the Kirklees borough.
“We inherited a council plan, strategy, a budget and fiscal situation from a previous administration and for now we will govern responsibly within that framework.
“But we also have a responsibility to bring a different set of priorities to this council through our cabinet priorities.
“Shortly, we will begin the work of developing our own council plan, setting out our vision for the next council period and the outcomes we want to achieve for the people, the towns and the villages of Kirklees.
“But we are not waiting for a new council plan before establishing the principles that will guide this cabinet’s priorities now.”
Coun Wood later set out these principles as follows:
Fixing the essentials and putting residents first – repairing roads, improving waste services and keeping streets, parks and neighbourhoods clean and tidy.
Strengthening civic pride, thriving places and a growing local economy – making sure investment delivers tangible benefits for local communities will be central to efforts to regenerate and revitalise town centres.
Making Kirklees safer and supporting those who need help – investment in the CCTV network to help prevent and solve crime, as well as exploring how existing powers can be used more effectively to tackle anti-social behaviour.
Ending wasteful spending and delivering better value for money – reviewing spending, eliminating waste, reducing forecast levels of council debt and making better use of technology to improve efficiency.
Coun Wood described the safety of Kirklees citizens as “paramount” and said that the administration’s request that Kirklees be included in the government’s national inquiry into grooming gangs “set out an important tone” for the cabinet.
She said her administration is not afraid to “approach subjects that have previously been shied away from nationally”.
She told the meeting that the council’s capital plans will be reviewed and subjected to “proper scrutiny”.
She also explained that her administration wants to make Kirklees safer in “practical and measurable ways” including investing in the council’s CCTV network and working closely with partners like the police to ensure the council’s powers are being used to their full extent.
When it came to value for money, Coun Wood said her cabinet will be taking a “relentless” approach, with a “stronger focus” on ensuring public money is spent effectively.
She vowed to renew the council’s relationship with the veteran community and emphasised that the local authority “must never lose sight of the essentials” like efficient waste collection, clean streets and well-maintained neighbourhoods.
She added: “Forty-nine days is only the beginning. There will be difficult decisions ahead which we are prepared to make for the benefit of Kirklees.
“There will be things we try that need changing and there will undoubtedly be occasions where we disagree but I want this cabinet to develop a reputation for being curious about the detail, ambitious for Kirklees, careful with people’s money, prepared to confront difficult problems and, above all, focused on outcomes for our residents.”