North Edinburgh residents to lead the debate in ‘upside down hustings’
Community campaigners in north Edinburgh are turning the traditional hustings model, which sees political candidates telling voters what they will do if elected, on its head. Pilton Community Health Project (PCHP) is bringing together a group of grassroots ‘experts’ from across the north of the city to tell politicians what changes are needed to improve the area. Continue reading Turning politics on it’s head
An election is to be held for membership of Leith Links Community Council due to the volume of nominations submitted, but it’s a different story for two local community councils: both Drylaw Telford and Muirhouse Salvesen CCs failed to attract sufficient nominations to reform.
The nomination process closed on 26 September and membership has now been confirmed for the city’s other community councils.
The first meeting of the new West Pilton West Granton Community Council is on Tuesday 4 October, 7pm at the West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre.
Cllr Vicki Redpath (Returning Officer)
The deadline is fast approaching for local people taking part in this year’s community council elections in Edinburgh – nominations close on Monday (26 September).
This year, nominations are being sought for 44 community councils. By becoming a member, local residents are given the opportunity to influence what happens in their area. Members can get involved in a wide range of activities, comment on planning and licensing applications, take part in community campaigns and work with others to improve the local area.
Community councils are made up of local residents and community groups such as youth forums, parent councils and student bodies. Each one is represented on the Neighbourhood Partnership for their area, where they work with local elected members, Police Scotland, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, NHS Lothian and the voluntary sector to identify and deliver local priorities.
The first community councils were established in Edinburgh in 1980 in Merchiston and Longstone, and there are more than 500 community councillors across the city.
Cllr Maureen Child, Communities and Neighbourhoods Committee Convener, said: “Community councils are an ideal way to support communities to thrive. They allow people of all ages and from all backgrounds to meet and share ideas and to make change happen. They are a fantastic way of making public sector agencies aware of the needs of local areas, and can really help to make changes for the better.
“With only three days left until nominations close, I’d like to encourage anyone who’s interested in local democracy to get involved – be part of something great.”
People aged 16 years or older who are registered to vote can join. The nomination period for the community council elections runs until 4pm on Monday 26 September 2016. Elections, where required, will take place on Thursday 27 October 2016. Residents can apply as an individual or as a local interest group, such as a Parent Council, Friends of Parks or sports club.
Nomination forms are available on the City of Edinburgh Council’s website.
You can find information on each individual community council, including maps, on the Neighbourhood Partnership website, telephone 0131 469 3838 or email community.councils@edinburgh.
Karen Lloyd
0131 469 357
Here’s your first update of the autumn together with details of how to join Trinity Community Council. It’s really very simple. Just get two other residents who haven’t already nominated someone to sign the attached form (below) , fill in your own details, sign the second side of it and return both to Cllr Allan Jackson at Edinburgh City Chambers by 4pm on Monday 26th September.
People’s Assembly Scotland Conference this Saturday
The People’s Assembly Scotland is organising an industrial and political conference on Saturday 17 September in the Renfield St Stephens Centre, 260 Bath St, Glasgow G2 4JP starting at 10.30am where leading trade unionists from UNITE, UNISON, RMT, FBU and others will address activists to discuss and organise building unity in the fight against austerity in a post-EU Scotland. Continue reading Building unity after EU Referendum
Community Council nominations open on Monday
Nominations for Edinburgh’s community councils open on Monday (5 September) and the city council is calling on people passionate about their area to play an active role and be part of something great! Continue reading Your community needs YOU! – be part of something great!
It’s official: the EU referendum debate left voters totally in the dark.
The final result could not have been clearer. But the actual campaign was anything but. Today we’ve set out what went wrong – how people from both sides of the EU debate found the experience top-down, negative and personality-dominated – but more importantly, how to make referendums better in the future.
We’re proud to launch our definitive analysis of the EU referendum debate, ‘It’s Good to Talk: Doing Referendums Differently After the EU Vote’. Because now that the dust is starting to settle, we need to learn the lessons from the EU campaign.
So today, we’re calling for a root-and-branch review into how we do referendums in the UK, with nine key recommendations on how to ensure voters get the debate they deserve in any future vote
From giving an official body the power to censure claims that are misleading, to ensuring grassroots citizen involvement at every stage of the process, we’ve laid out the ‘referendum reforms’ that are needed to prevent us making the same mistakes again.
We hope you find the report interesting and useful. Instead of leaving voters out in the cold, together we can make sure that future referendums offer the kind of informed and engaging debate we need. Thanks for your support.
| READ THE REPORT |
Best wishes,
Katie Ghose,
Chief Executive,
Electoral Reform Society
