THIS week I headed back to my hometown of Wigan for a debate organised at the Town Hall for Local Democracy Week.
As I was ushered into the council chamber I expected to be seated on the fringes but was told to go and sit on the actual benches where the councillors park their derrieres week in, week out.
First thing to say is that the seats were extremely comfy... but with a keypad and microphone infront of me I got a really bad feeling that someone would ask me to stand up and explain the difference between district and council councils. Thankfully, that didn't happen.
The evening was overseen by Dave Guest, the BBC North West reporter who crops up at many of these events. The panel was made up of three councillors (Labour, Cons and Community Action Party), someone from teh local police, NHS Trust and Chamber of Commerce.
The debate was quite excellent and there was even a chance for everyone to take part in some ininteractive voting with the results flashing up before your eyes just seconds after pressing the button. This really brought the whole evening to life and even people who didn't want to speak publicly could take part.
I'd guess there were around 50 people there - a lot of them from youth groups - and the topics ranged from legalising drugs to congestion charging.
All in all a good night... I wonder if one could be held in West Lancs next year?
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Cllr Sandy Franzen wrote...
I volunteered to be on the panel as a Community Action Party Councillor for Lowton East ward in Wigan. I felt it was a good thing to get as many of the public and especially young people involved in local politics. It is important for people to have a say even if they do not or cannot vote. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me and the questions gave much opportunity for a wide ranging debate. It should not just be an event for one week in the year. Roll on more of the same.
Posted by: Cllr Sandy Franzen | October 20, 2007 12:19 AM