“People are being denied their right to decide what happens in Hastings”

Green Leader for Hastings Borough Council Julia Hilton says, following today’s Government announcement that the East Sussex County Council elections in May have been cancelled.

“People must be allowed to vote at the local elections in May. The big parties in Westminster claim they want to devolve more power to local councils, but now, by cancelling due elections, both Labour and Conservatives are responsible for the biggest removal of power away from local people in recent history.”

“This gives the failing Conservative administration in East Sussex a free pass. Only an election in May can hold them accountable for the last four years of poor decision-making and disregard for Hastings. Our fragile democracy can’t afford to ignore the people’s right to vote.

“Green candidates give people a real alternative to the failed Tory and Labour parties, and the Green Party will always defend local decision-making.

“With a five-fold increase in Green councillor numbers over the last five local elections, it does look like the two big parties are running scared of facing the voters.” 

National Green Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay MP said, “How can the government claim an electoral mandate for these major local government changes if those most impacted see their elections cancelled? 

“The Green Party is urging the government to save our democracy, allow these long-planned elections to take place and get around the table to discuss how to make devolution work for people in local areas across the country.

“We want decisions made closest to where they have the greatest impact with significant devolution of powers and funding from Westminster. Without that, people will grow ever more cynical about politics.”

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Cllr Julia Hilton, Leader of Hastings Borough Council, condemns Tory plans to cancel East Sussex County Council’s elections

East Sussex Conservatives today voted to use the government’s recently announced shake-up of local councils as a means to suspend the May 2025 County elections. If agreed by Government, this would keep them in power at ESCC for at least two more years.

The dying Conservative regime – which has spent the last ten years resisting meaningful climate action – has been hanging onto power by a thread since 2023. If the elections are cancelled, they would be the ones to decide who leads the creation of a new mega-council, sweeping away Hastings and all the other district and borough councils in East and West Sussex.

The Green Group of Councillors called for today’s Extraordinary General Meeting at County Hall in Lewes, in order that the full council could at least debate the matter. Other parties joined the Greens in supporting their motion to reject the Conservative plan to request cancellation of the elections in order to make the priority list for devolution. They argued that the devolution process could still happen without cancelling the elections. Sadly, they lost the vote 23-21.

Greens across Eas Sussex have come together to write to the Minister for Local Government, asking that he reject ESCC’s request. You can write too using our template here.

The Government’s decision should be announced by the end of the month.

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I would like to thank the officer team for a smooth well-run election and count, and for their handling of the major incident resulting from the failure of yet another piece of Southern Water infrastructure which left most of Hastings without water over one of the busiest weekends of the year. The 41^st Jack in the Green festival was celebrated regardless – ironically under a downpour on Monday – and thousands joined in. 

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Julia said:

‘This solution has been reached after lengthy discussions with all political groups.  I had hoped to be able to form a unity cabinet with representation from all four groups, including Labour and Conservative, but that has not proved possible. This interim administration is one that all groups have said they can live with for the next few months until the May elections, to give much-needed stability to the council. The final cabinet is still to be agreed but it will be made up of members of the Green Party and the recently formed Hastings Independent Group.

‘My focus for the months to the elections in May will be on securing the financial future of the council and working on the ambitious plans to tackle the housing crisis.

‘Part of the problem we have had, in tackling these issues, relates to our current clunky cabinet system of decision-making. Hastings Green Party has long called for a move to a more democratic and transparent committee system. The aim is for all councillors to have a voice in decision-making. With four political groups as well as individual independents now sitting on the council, it’s essential that we develop a more inclusive and consensual decision-making process. I hope that this short period before the May local elections can allow us to start making that change, and I look forward to working with all councillors to develop that new political culture. 

‘Residents want to see their councillors working together in the running of our council for the good of the town. Our priority as a councillor body must be to ensure the council can survive and thrive, emerging from the latest set of financial challenges even leaner but nimble and agile to work with partners and create a thriving and flourishing future for the town and its residents.’

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Green Leader Councillor Julia Hilton denounces Labour power grab

At last night’s Annual Council in Hastings, Labour turned its back on collaborative working and relied on the votes of a councillor recently expelled from the Conservative Party, now sitting as a member of the Reform UK Party, and the mayor’s casting vote to conduct a power grab of all chairs and vice chairs of committees at the council. Labour now controls the council with the support of the far right.

Labour also voted against the idea of sharing the mayoralty among the political groups, as happens in many other councils, turning down the proposal for Councillor Claire Carr as Green Deputy Mayor in favour of their own candidate, Councillor Heather Bishop. Councillor Margi O’Callaghan was elected unanimously as the new Mayor.

In her speech at Annual Full Council Green Leader Julia Hilton addressed Cllr Barnett, leader of the council. ‘In your last leader’s column in the Observer you talked about how all 32 councillors are here because we care about our town, its people and economy. But your actions this evening show that you don’t really care about the opinions and skills of the non-Labour members of this council and have returned to the old ways of working within your Labour cabal. It seems a short-sighted move to abandon all commitments to shared working and rely on the support of a councillor who belongs to a party with views diametrically opposed to your own.’

She went on to ask if there was any real commitment to improving governance when meetings to reform the constitution have been repeatedly cancelled at short notice, despite unanimous support for her motion calling for improved decision making back in December. ‘At the moment the only way to get information on key decisions like the future of St Mary in the Castle or what might happen to football in this town seems to be to force a motion to come to full council. This is no way to conduct decision making,’ she observed.

‘There is still no sight of an action plan to urgently turn round the council’s finances after a peer review by the Local Government Association 8 weeks ago.’

Councillor Hilton went on to challenge the lack of progress on a new tourism plan, or proper scrutiny of climate action targets and the ongoing uncertainty about the cost of the hotel the council plans to build on behalf of multinational company Whitbread. She said, ‘I fail to understand how this idea was ever supported by a council that professes to support the idea of community wealth building and strengthening the local economy where money stays in the town rather than being leached out to a multinational company who must have seen Hastings coming.’

The full speech can be heard here at 1 hr 55 mins in. Annual Council 24 May 2023 | Hastings Borough Council.

Notes

Hastings Council is made up of 15 Labour, 11 Conservative, 5 Green and 1 Reform councillor.

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[1] The 32 seat council is now made up of 15 Labour, 12 Conservatives and 5 Green.
[2] Julia Hilton (Old Hastings) took the cabinet post of climate change, environment and active travel, while Glenn Haffenden (Tressell) took Urban Environment.

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On May 6, local voters will be going to the polls to elect councillors for Hastings Borough Council and East Sussex County Council.

There are sixteen seats up for re-election at Hastings Borough Council, and eight at East Sussex County Council. Hastings Green Party will be standing candidates in every seat, so every voter in the town will have the opportunity to vote for a progressive Green candidate.

At the last town council elections in 2018, Julia Hilton came within 29 votes of winning a seat from Labour in the Old Hastings ward. Hastings has for many years had a two-party (Labour and Conservative) council, with Labour having a huge majority. We believe it’s time for more diversity on the council, and for the town to have councillors who can make decisions in the best interests of the communities they serve, rather than being told how to vote by their parties. It’s time to have councillors who will demand transparency and accountability from the council. It’s time to vote Green.

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