Cllr Andy Fewings, leader of the Greens on Burnley Council, has expressed disappointment that the Labour Party has declined a proposal for a shared executive of three Labour and three non-Labour councillors.
This proposal included a plan to have the four committee chair and vice-chair positions split across the other parties. Greens would not have taken up any of these positions.
Cllr Fewings tweeted: “Instead of asking voters why they didn’t vote for them, Burnley Labour are punishing residents for voting for others. The Greens are leading calls for cross-party cooperation. If Labour cared about anything other than itself, they would engage to avoid paralysing council services.”
As the vote concluded in the council chamber, Cllr Fewings said: “Tonight the Burnley and Padiham Independent (BAPIP) candidate, Charlie Briggs, was elected as leader of the council.
“I called upon the BAPIP to appoint three Labour executive members, the offer was made but Labour rejected the positions and so two Liberal Democrats and two Conservatives took up the posts.
“I am pleased that it was agreed that the committee chairs and vice-chairs would be split between the parties, in the interests of scrutiny and democracy, which will mean two Labour Party chairs and two vice-chairs. This does mean also one UKIP and one Lib Dem chair, and two BAPIP vice-chairs.
“The two Green councillors in Burnley voted for this proposal, with great reluctance, because we have prioritised the smooth functioning of the council, its ability to deliver the services residents need and for those actions to receive democratic scrutiny, over party political interests and our extreme discomfort at having UKIP in this position.”