Ramsgate Parish Council plans agreed

Plans to establish a parish or town council for Ramsgate have been agreed by Thanet District Council.

At a full council meeting, Members agreed to approve the making of an order, which will become effective on 1 April 2009, to constitute a new town or parish council for Ramsgate. It means Thanet will be one of the first places in the country to establish such a council, under new government legislation.

The change in government legislation on 30 October 2007 essentially made councils responsible for creating new parishes. However, at the time the legislation came into effect, Thanet District Council had already submitted the idea of creating a parish council for Ramsgate to the Secretary of State.

In May 2008, it was confirmed that Thanet District Council would be responsible for considering the petition and taking forward the process. As this was a new process, the council sought legal advice, which it received in August 2008.

Chief Executive Richard Samuel said: This decision now allows us to move forward with the creation of a parish or town council for Ramsgate. It has taken a long time to get to this point and the change in government legislation has made the process that we have had to go through exceptionally complex. However, now we can proceed with making the order, which will then come into effect from 1 April 2009. With major elections for both County Council and the European Parliament now confirmed for June, it is not possible to hold the elections for the new Ramsgate council in May. Its simply too much work to try and undertake and its something that we need to get right, rather than rushing. Thats why the likely date for an election will probably be September 2009, once people have returned from their summer breaks.

ENDS