I READ with a mixture of mirth and incredulity your report in the Western Telegraph of the cabinet meeting held on December 3rd.

Despite a well-choreographed campaign by some headteachers in the county, the Independent members of the cabinet failed to get 100% of their cabinet colleagues to support Councillor Huw George. That in itself is some indictment.

This is the councillor who oversaw the events in Pembrokeshire’s pupil referral unit which led to the utterly damning Estyn report on the council’s failures; the same councillor who agreed with the initial statement issued by the council which said that “No children had been harmed,”

which had to be withdrawn within a week.

While senior officers of the authority have at regular intervals fallen on their swords, Huw George sails merrily along, now promoted with an increased salary to deputy leader.

The Independent Group accept well rewarded responsibility but never any blame.

Councillor Stoddart should be congratulated on his motion, but he should have known better when he stated that he was “frankly amazed” that the vice-chairman thought that cabinet was the appropriate forum for this debate.

The fallacy of democracy is clearly exposed. The reason they passed the motion to cabinet was a delaying tactic.

Hopefully the no confidence vote can be put before full council next Thursday.

The expressions of exasperation from Councillor Stoddard are understandable.

He is correct when he states what takes place in County Hall is an “undemocratic charade.”

I hope that the motion of no confidence is only the first. There is light at the end of the tunnel, but it’s been a long struggle and it’s not over yet.

The next Estyn report is due to be published on December 17th, just too late for the council meeting, a coincidence? I am led to believe that it concludes that any potential for improvement is unlikely, with standards regarded as unsatisfactory.

Yet another officer, an experienced and highly respected one, has said he is going. When will the first cabinet member follow suit?

CLLR MICHAEL WILLIAMS Plaid Cymru Group Leader Tenby 

 

I WOULD like to comment on the report of last week’s PCC cabinet meeting headlined “No support for no confidence motion”.

This was in respect of my motion of no confidence in the cabinet member for education, Cllr Huw George and it should come as no surprise that nine out of ten members of the cabinet, including Cllr George himself, voted against, while the tenth, Cllr Sue Perkins, abstained.

That motion came before the council on October 18th and was remitted to the cabinet by the vice-chairman, though under the constitution, he had the discretion to have my Notice of Motion debated there and then.

Before the cabinet was a three-page submission setting out the reasons why I thought Cllr George should go.

There was no attempt by any cabinet member to challenge anything I said in that document, and the debate, such as it was, consisted of a statement by the Leader that he had “considerable confidence”

in Cllr George, followed swiftly by the vote.

All the cabinet members hold their positions at the Leader’s pleasure, so it was predictable that they would fall into line.

How the vice-chairman of council came to think the cabinet was a suitable forum to objectively consider this matter is a mystery.

Leader Jamie Adams reappointed Cllr George to his present post following May’s election and promoted him to deputy leader, so it is not surprising that he has “considerable confidence” in him.

Indeed, if he didn’t have such confidence it would be his duty to sack him.

There have been a series of critical reports over the past 15 months on the county’s education service and child safeguarding practices.

This has led to the “retirement”

of the director of social services, Jon Skone; director of education, Graham Longster; and head of education Martin Lloyd – the last on account of “a challenging”, but as yet unpublished, Estyn report.

My motion of no confidence is designed to uphold the principle that, in a democracy, when things go wrong, it is the politicians who shoulder the blame, and not the civil servants.

MIKE STODDART Court Farm Liddeston Milford Haven