Forum Topic

Borough Meeting tonight

The first Hounslow Borough meeting since the Local Elections takes place this evening at 7.30pm and should be very interesting.If you cannot make it to the Civic Centre then there is the excellent Webcast provided to watch it all at http://www.hounslow.gov.uk/index/hounslow_webcast.htm

Paul Fisher ● 7000d32 Comments

JohnYes it was a celebratory occasion both in the Council Chamber and in the Mayor's Parlour...and there was an air of excitement about getting down to business under the colourful umbrella of a talented lady...the Lady Mayor. Let's hope that everyone is a winner..and we go forward to more joyeous times.  So I'd better get that spelling right for starters ("Lin not Lyn")!!::Dear Sarah you missed yet another occasion for a maiden meet-up..and drinks..for ALL!  But I know that you are nursing a bad leg on this occasion after a fall. So get well soon and don't miss next time!! ;0)  You would have enjoyed the scene.

Jim Lawes ● 6998d

It looks mre like Jimmy Greave's dad!

Percival Bird ● 6998d

I'm not sure why you seem to be offended by my comments. Perhaps you and your colleagues (or are they ex-colleagues, I'm not quite sure) would rather be accused of having hidden right wing agendas or that we kept on bringing up your colleague's spent criminal convictions every time there is an election. We could even distribute some leaflets containing a pack of lies about you and deny any knowledge of thier content.The truth is,the way in which the ICG and its members have been treated in the past by the ruling Labour Party will not be forgotten so quickly. So you see being reffered to as dross isn't all that bad, is it?

Andrew Sibley ● 6998d

John,I know exactly how Lin feels. As you know I prefer to be called Andy but the most anoying thing is when someone spells it "Andi".

Andrew Sibley ● 6998d

"hope you enjoyed the drinks in the Mayors Parlour"... n/m ... ... ;-)

Sarah Felstead ● 6999d

Jim,Cllr. Linda Davies.I do not wish to sound pedantic, however, it is Lin not Lyn, she gets very annoyed when it's spelt wrong. Believe me you do not want to see Lin when she is annoyed.Good to see you last evening, hope you enjoyed the drinks in the Mayors Parlour.John Davies

John Davies ● 6999d

I have just read the article on the tw8 website news READIT BEFORE YOU READ THE REST OF THIS POSTLINK =  http://brentfordtw8.com/default.asp?section=community&spage=common/hounspol18.htmhave you read it ?My immediate reaction is the attitude shown by the conservitives towards the ICG very good to hear over the years i have seen the childish behavior shown by labour towards the Icg which is in my opinion counter productive this article shows how the cons and the icg will work together as opposed to the old regime which was counter productive thankyou to the tories well done all of you and keep up the good workyour comments please and vanessa if you do comment cant it be sensible and not bitter and childlike as per your previous comment

Graeme Perkins ● 6999d

Charming to the last - as always

Vanessa Smith ● 6999d

Phil, the amoral dross that you mention were sitting not too far away from me in the public gallery. It was a pitty that some of the longer serving Labour councillors were not prepared to come to the fore and face the music. In my mind they showed the same sort of contempt last night for their political opponents as they have done for the last 35 years.

Andrew Sibley ● 6999d

AndyI would echo those sentiments.  Most of the posts which Matt had been put up for were contested, which invariably resulted in him being defeated.  I too felt a great deal of sympathy with him in his predicament, albeit tempered slightly by the knowledge that Labour had treated others - and in particular the ICG - far, far worse when it was in office.Nevertheless I would agree that Matt demonstrated great dignity, and I hope I am not being naive in expressing the desire that he and any others like him will emerge as the new face of a resurgent local Labour Party once it is able to cast off the stifling influence of the amoral dross which has been responsible for leading it to its current sorry pass.

Phil Andrews ● 6999d

From where I was sitting the voting went pretty much as I expected, but I was privy to the details of the probable make up of the new administration a while ago.The one thing that did surprise me was the amount of nominations for Matt Harmer for various committee positions (all unsuccessful I think) from the Labour benches. I got the feeling that he was treated a bit like a lamb to the slaughter by his colleagues and although I'm sure that Matt won't thank me much for saying this, I did feel a bit sorry for him. Perhaps Matt could give us his side of the story. Anyway despite all this he seemed to handle the situation with a great deal of dignity and should be applauded for doing so.

Andrew Sibley ● 6999d

It's amazing to think that there are nearly 100 committees and outside organisations on which our Councillors sit. There are certainly some changes in the membership.  The scribbles on these pages are semi casual..and not authoritative...but give you an idea of what's what..if you didn't know before!00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooWhere there were more nominations that seats available…the Lady Mayoress…called for a show of hands for each name.  Others can comment on the pattern of voting!!

Jim Lawes ● 6999d

Congratulations to all the ICG Councillors and especially Cllr Fisher.

Simon Anderson ● 6999d

I do wish you could catch my good side Jim in your pictures ;-)My congratulations to Cllr Barwood who I believe is the first Conservative Mayor of Hounslow in over 30 years.

Paul Fisher ● 6999d

Lady Mayor, Cllr Felicity Barwood, kicked off by saying that CIVIC PRIDE was her theme for the year.  She gave an impressive performance all evening..with clarity of voice and a clear understanding of the role she had to play in establishing the various Committees..and getting Councillors up and running.At last, a new era seemed to be unfolding....but many bystanders were intrigued at how voting would go when small elections were held to vote people onto various Committees.Firstly the Executive and notes on the leading committeesis as follows:ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jim Lawes ● 6999d

With 70 in the public gallery and a full house on the Chamber floor, and others watching the webcam on the Internet, the Mayor, Cllr Dashan Grewal introduced the first item on the main Agenda which was the election of the new Mayor.Cllr Felicity Barwood was eloquently proposed for this position by Cllr Paul Lynch and he gave a good account of her suitability and experience. "She was the ideal person to do this job at the present time"  and "I can assure you that she will be a hard act to follow"The new Isleworth Councillors..Mr and Mrs Fisher looked on intentively at the theatre of the proceedings:oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooIt's time for the old Mayor to escorted out of the Chamber at the end of his term in office..in which he had raised thousands of pounds for Charities. All stood as he left his Chair. He had sadly not laid on  a pole-dancing cabaret for the interval!!oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooCllr Felicity Barwood is led back into the Chamber by the Macebearer..wearing her scarlet robe and chain of office.Sorry about the poor snaps. It was the best I could do!..up in the gods.ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooA new era was about to begin.

Jim Lawes ● 6999d

The Conservative Party seating awaits...their seating also extended across the isle (out of sight)ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooTo their left a similar size number of seats awaited the Labour Party ...oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooobut to add to the fun? the LibDems, the Community Groups (Isleworth and Syon)..and the Independent Alliance Groups took the middle ground!?ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Jim Lawes ● 6999d

So the Tories have cobbled together a coaltion and are running the Borough?

Neil Chippendale ● 6999d

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooThere were 70 locals in the public gallery tonight to watch the unvieling of the new Borough Council.

Jim Lawes ● 6999d

I watched chunks of the webcast and watching paint dry might be a comparable activity. It was difficult to understand any nuances of the voting , particularly without the agenda papers showing the uncontested nominations. However, from the contested votes it seemed to me that ICG and the Liberals seemed to do quite well.I'd be interested to see what the Executive looks like - it again wasn't clear to me who might be on it and what areas of responsibilities they might have.And how many can you get into the Mayor's Parlour for drinks ?

Tim Henderson ● 6999d

John,I am happy to respond to that as best as I can.1) If I recall correctly, Conservative Members were disappointed with your choice of Deputy Mayor.  We made it clear that we had no problem with Councillor Sangha personally; indeed I think he is a really nice guy. However, we did not think that a brand new Councillor should be bestowed with such a position.2) I do not know how many meetings Allan Wilson has attended but I would guess that it is more than me.  He has previously been a Councillor in LBH for approximately seven years.As an aside, the Mayor appoints the Deputy Mayor, as per Article 17 of the Council’s constitution.  The way I read your posting, your Deputy was chosen by the then Labour Group.  Have I read that correctly?

Cllr Mark Bowen ● 7000d

I thought Allan Wilson was a Cllr a few years ago John or am I mistaken?

Paul Fisher ● 7000d

Councillor Allan Wilson......at last and with apologies.

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

Councillor Allan Wilson.....a correct sized picture!!

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

Councillor Allan Wilson...possibly the new Deputy Mayor?He represents Feltham North Ward.  He could well be good at chairmanship (of meetings) material too.

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

Councillor Felicity Barwood?If so..then congratulations to her....certainly as she is apparently listed as a resident of my dear old street and birthplace..Wolseley Gardens W4!

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

I'll see you there Jim.

Andrew Sibley ● 7000d

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

Mayor - Felicity BarwoodDeputy - Allan WilsonBoth Conservatives. Note that 4 years ago when Councillor Sangha was appointed Deputy Mayor at his first meeting Labour was criticised by the Tories for appointing someone with no experience. Er...... how many meetings has Councillor Wilson attended to date?

John Connelly ● 7000d

It should be a full house.....ever Councillor expected to attend!Tuesday, 23 May 2006 7:30 pm, Borough Council Councillor Peter Hills             Member Expected Councillor Mark Bowen             Member Expected Councillor Sohan Sangha     Member Expected Councillor Amritpal Mann     Member Expected Councillor Andrew Morgan-Watts     Member Expected Councillor Samantha Davies     Member Expected Councillor Barbara Reid     Member Expected Councillor Ruth Cadbury     Member Expected Councillor Robert Oulds     Member Expected Councillor Robert Kinghorn     Member Expected Councillor Darshan Grewal     CHAIR Expected Councillor Rajinder Bath     Member Expected Councillor Pritam Grewal     Member Expected Councillor Genevieve Hibbs     Member Expected Councillor Gopal Dhillon     Member Expected Councillor Gurmail Lal             Member Expected Councillor Peter Thompson     Member Expected Councillor Jagdish Sharma     Member Expected Councillor Jiwan Virk             Member Expected Councillor John Connelly     Member Expected Councillor John Cooper             Member Expected Councillor John Howliston     Member Expected Councillor Adrian Lee             Member Expected Councillor Peter De Vic Carey     Member Expected Councillor Peta Vaught             Member Expected Councillor Paul Lynch             Member Expected Councillor Linda Nakamura     Member Expected Councillor Ajmer Dhillon     Member Expected Councillor Pamela Fisher     Member Expected Councillor Mohammed Chaudhary     Member Expected Councillor Mohinder Gill     Member Expected Councillor Phil Andrews     Member Expected Councillor Felicity Barwood     Member Expected Councillor Shivcharn Singh Gill      Member Expected Councillor Sheila O'Reilly     Member Expected Councillor Gerald McGregor     Member Expected Councillor Nisar Malik             Member Expected Councillor Ajmer Grewal     Member Expected Councillor Paul Fisher             Member Expected Councillor Matthew Harmer     Member Expected Councillor Linda Davies     Member Expected Councillor Lily Bath             Member Expected Councillor Jonathan Hardy     Member Expected Councillor Peter Pitt             Member Expected Councillor John Todd             Member Expected Councillor Harley Buckner     Member Expected Councillor Poonam Dhillon     Member Expected Councillor Gillian Hutchison     Member Expected Councillor Rebecca Stewart     Member Expected Councillor Drew Morgan-Watts     Member Expected Councillor Caroline Andrews     Member Expected Councillor Bradley Fisher     Member Expected Councillor Beverley Williams     Member Expected Councillor Barbara Harris     Member Expected Councillor Shirley Fisher     Member Expected Councillor Andrew Dakers     Member Expected Councillor Allan Wilson     Member Expected Councillor Sukhbir Singh Dhaliwal Member ExpectedAnd this years all smiling Mayor and Deputy Mayor will be??

Jim Lawes ● 7000d

Should we let people know who the new Mayor and Deputy Mayor are going to be together with the political composition of the Executive? If we do it will save them a trip to Lampton Palace and avoid any pretence that the outcome of tonight's meeting is uncertain.

John Connelly ● 7000d

I expect your right John being a seasoned pro so to speak but for a first timer I am actually looking forward to it.

Paul Fisher ● 7000d

Paul, you should point out that "very interesting" would only apply to people whose hobby is watching paint drying! I can think of nothing worse than a Council AGM for putting the public off council meetings.

John Connelly ● 7000d