Yorkshire town residents to vote but councillor say they will not resign regardless of result

Newby and Scalby residents are set to vote in a town poll as councillors say they will not resign regardless of the result.

On Friday, August 9, a town poll in Newby and Scalby will ask residents whether they want members of the town council to resign and hold new elections.

The poll follows a vote of “no confidence” from dozens of concerned residents but Newby and Scalby Town Council has said that elected members intend to serve until the end of their current term in 2027.

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A spokesperson for the town council said: “So that parishioners are not misled, the town council needs to make it very clear that a ‘Parish Poll’ cannot remove elected or co-opted councillors from office, and does not have the power to force resignation or removal of a councillor from office.”

Polling station sign. Courtesy Anttoni Numminen/LDRSPolling station sign. Courtesy Anttoni Numminen/LDRS
Polling station sign. Courtesy Anttoni Numminen/LDRS

Coun Jackie Smith, vice chair of Newby and Scalby Town Council, said: “This poll will cost residents and electors approximately £3,500.”

The question in the town poll, proposed by the Friends of Newby and Scalby Wellbeing Group, asks: “Do you want Newby and Scalby Town Council to be dissolved and a new Newby and Scalby Town Council to be elected?”

Some residents and councillors have accused the town council of “misbehaviour” and have raised concerns about the provision of local services.

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Newby and Scalby Town Council has also been hit by allegations of bullying against its staff.

The authority has said it “does not condone bullying in the workplace”.

The hours of voting in the poll will be from 4pm until 9pm on Friday, August 9.

There will be four polling stations in total, two of which will be located at St Mark’s Community Hall.

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The vote count will take place immediately after the close of polling and the result will be declared “as soon as is practicable after the count, by declaration, by public notice, and by notification to the chairman of the parish meeting.”

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