Month: November 2022

New Leader of NFDC

Cllr Jill Cleary has been elected as the Leader of New Forest District Council (NFDC) at the Council meeting of 14 November 2022, “My ultimate aspiration is to see NFDC thrive and be able to continue, in these challenging times, to offer excellent frontline services our residents want to see.

“Housing will always be a passion of mine and my commitment to making a difference when we are most needed is what motivates me as a councillor. I am excited to be able to take my drive for housing services and apply that to the bigger remit I now have as Leader.  My focus is rooted in local communities, solving problems and being forward thinking. I want my cabinet to have that approach across all council services.

“Keeping our district a vibrant and special place is not something we can or should do alone.  I will work with our towns and parishes, the county council, partners, businesses, voluntary sector organisations and local groups.  If everyone is at the table we can get the job done with far better results than working alone. 

“I will build on the work underway to ensure that NFDC is listening to what people want and need and I have already started asking councillors to take me around their wards so I can understand all the different areas. We are undertaking a residents survey and my commitment is that we will be open to what communities tell us. I will encourage the whole organisation to be a listening organisation, to hear what matters to people.

“The challenges we face are significant, including the cost of living and responding to the climate and nature emergency, but I will champion our work together to find those innovative approaches that will mean we are able to change people’s lives for the better whilst protecting and enhancing our amazing New Forest.” 

Cllr Cleary confirmed her Cabinet will remain as currently, with the exception that the housing portfolio will move to Cllr Edward Heron.

Cllr Diane Andrews is the new Deputy Leader. 

At the Council meeting Cllr Cleary said,

“I would like to thank the Council for their support in electing me the new Leader. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Cllr Edward Heron for his service and achievements as the previous leader. He has championed us being a more responsive council with a commitment to improving communications, and he has worked to ensure that as a council we have more influence on regional matters, always with the benefit of our local residents in mind.  He has worked tirelessly to bring the Solent Freeport this far and I have asked him to continue with this really important task until May 2023.

“I would like to thank the Cabinet for their dedication and the role that they have working as a team to lead this council in making significant progress with the corporate plan and maintaining the focus on delivery and moving forward. Therefore, I do not want to make huge changes to the Cabinet and I have huge pleasure in announcing Cllr Diane Andrews will be my deputy, Cllr Edward Heron will now be responsible for the housing services portfolio, cllrs Steve Davies, David Russell, Michael Harris, Jeremy Heron, Geoff Blunden will remain my cabinet.”

Message from Donna Jones – Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight

I’ve launched a survey to gather your views on whether I should increase the level of council tax which you pay in support of policing, to ensure continued investment in Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary.

I know this is a very difficult time financially for the country, and potentially for you as an individual, and I am conscious that any rise in your council tax to support policing will come at the same time as other costs are also increasing.

However, it is also a difficult time for funding your police force; police are not immune to the cost of living crisis and therefore the 2023/24 budget is being set against the backdrop of a challenging economic environment with general inflation, pay costs, utilities and fuel costs all rising.

For example, the cost increase for police officer pay is over 5%, and general inflation is running at 10%; our forecast increase in government grant is only 1.1%, so this creates a funding shortfall for next year.

One option available to me to reduce the funding shortfall is to increase the police council tax.

The maximum I am allowed to increase the council tax by on a Band D property for 2023/24 is £10 per annum (a 4.2% increase, significantly below inflation), which is an increase of 83p per month. If I increase by the maximum, for residents in property Bands A-C the increase would equate to less than 83p a month, and for properties in Bands E-H it would be more than 83p per month.

If you are not sure which council tax band your property is in, you can check at www.gov.uk/council-tax-bands

If I don’t increase the council tax for 2023/24, I will need to work with the Constabulary to implement savings, with an inevitable impact on the overall service level which can be provided. I see first-hand day in day out the vital work which the Constabulary undertakes to keep the residents of Hampshire and the Isle of Wight safe, and I would not wish to see this compromised.

However, I know that any increase in the amount you pay must be considered carefully. I also hear very loudly that you want to see more officers in your communities. That’s why it’s so important that you complete this short survey and have your say on continued investment. 

With yours and the government’s support, I am on track to have recruited 600 more police officers in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight by March 2023, hitting a 25% increase in police officers responding to emergencies and patrolling the beat.

Through this, I am making your police force even more local, visible and accessible. More police means more deployments, more crimes solved, and safer streets.

By completing this survey, you will really help us set the budget and the council tax precepts for policing for the next financial year. I want to hear your feedback so I can represent your views on where you want your money to go.

I have opened this survey for five weeks to hear from as many people as possible. 

The survey will close at 11.59pm on Sunday 4 December 2022.

Click this link to take the survey.

As the hours of darkness get longer, New Forest organisations who make up the Animal Accident Reduction Group are reminding drivers on Forest roads to take extra care and remember to ‘Pass Wide and Slow’ when encountering ponies and other animals.
The call follows the official inclusion of this requirement in the latest edition of the Highway Code.
The winter months have historically been the worst for livestock and wildlife fatalities. Following a record breaking 15 weeks in early 2022 without a fatal road traffic accident, group members would like to ask the public for their cooperation and support in keeping these numbers down.
To date this year there have been 60 call outs to accidents involving animals compared to 77 in the same period last year, with 24 ponies, one cow and two pigs losing their lives. Another 16 animals have been injured (numbers correct as at 1 November 2022).
One of the great successes is ‘Operation Mountie’, a joint initiative which has seen 17 operations over the past year. Police and partner organisations have stopped 155 speeding vehicles, one of which was driving at 70mph in a 40mph area. Some of those stopped are given tickets or other enforcements, and others are given education about driving to the conditions.
Hampshire Police, working with New Forest agencies, has been running Operation Mountie since November 2021 following evidence from the New Forest Roads Awareness and Community Speed Watch groups on high-risk routes