Dear Sir,
Anyone visiting the council chamber can’t help but notice the chamber displays an impressive array of photographs of men and women who have dedicated their lives in the service of the people of our community. As grand as it may first appear it’s the character and conduct of those men and women who now sit in the council chamber that set the standard by which the people of our community rightly judge the behaviour of their elected public servants. Either those photographs stand for something greater than the individuals themselves that others can aspire to, or they are nothing more than a colourful backdrop to create a sense of civic pride and importance.
We are a tri-party council and party politics can create divides that may never be fully reconciled, but this should never get in the way of councillors of all parties doing their best to find common ground and agreement upon which to build a working relationship for the benefit of the community as a whole. Serious problems require people who are serious about finding workable solutions, solutions which sometimes require personal preferences to be put aside and difficult and unpopular decisions made which is testament to the character of the politicians who are prepared to choose the long term welfare of the many over the fleeting popularity of the few.
Politics should never be allowed as an excuse for individual or collective behaviour in the chamber or the public eye that brings into question the conduct and integrity of those who have put themselves forward as worthy of the trust and respect of the voters who put them into office. Our professionalism has to be more than just catchy rhetoric, glib sound bites or the well timed photo shoot. We, as councillors, have to become more aware and give the public the credit for common sense and logic they deserve. Whether we like it or not, if you wear the tie or the crest, we represent Aycliffe Town Council and more importantly the people of this community regardless of whether they personally voted for you or not.
The rest, as they say, is all down to character and integrity; do we stand by what we believe and do what we have to, to make it work, do we hold ourselves accountable for our behaviour, or do we take the easy option, step back and simply put ‘name and address supplied’?
Cllr. Phillip Hawkins