The Lib Dems on Harrogate Council have said they are very angry at the way that annual events are being cancelled.
Cllr Pat Marsh said:
Firstly, it was the local Christmas Market, which has meant that many local Artisans will no longer be able to sell their products to their fellow Residents – the decision not made by all Councillors.
Now we have the annual Fair being cancelled, something that thousands of people have enjoyed over many, many years. Why has this been allowed to happen?
This is a loss of income for the Council. Why couldn’t the Council contact those running the event to ask if they were coming this year?
Why couldn’t the Council be more supportive with the price?
After the year we have had most events like this have really struggled? We could end up with a reputation of not welcoming and not being supportive of special events.
The Town has seen us go from hosting International events such as the UCI to loosing some of our high profile events for our Residents.
Cllr Marsh has said that the decision are being made by council officers with little involvement from the elected councillors.
Cllr Pat Marsh said:
This is not all Councillors making these decisions or taking the actions.
Even when the Lib Dems arranged a meeting between the Council and the Christmas Market their Leader was asked not to attend.
We need to ensure that all Councillors are kept informed and have a chance to have an input, we are all elected by the Residents to act on their behalf.
Accountability and involvement in the decision-making process by elected representatives is one of the key issues here.
Christmas Markey eh? Who is he? Does he do your proof reading and spell check?