Stop fief! -
ruling Boston is
for four years
– not just for Christmas!

Tonight, in a figurative, rather than a literal sense, the new Boston Borough Council totters officially into action.
Its brief meeting will elect a new Mayor and Deputy, and pat the old one and his deputy on the head with a vote of thanks. Speaking of the outgoing Mayor, it would be cavalier of us not to acknowledge old Obe-Wan’s sterling fund raising efforts which have brought in more than £5,000 each for Macmillan Cancer Support and the Stump restoration appeal. Well done that man!
Tonight’s session will then adjourn until Wednesday when it approves the meeting schedule for the year ahead, appoints a leader, committee chairmen and representatives to outside organisations.
We already know who’s who on the council cabinet.
The problem is, we know nothing about their capabilities.
When the BBI appointed its star chamber four years ago it merely listed names, followed by the title of the portfolio held.
This time around, the list of duties is specific and exhaustive.
Leader Peter Bedford, for instance, will have special responsibility for coastal strategy, strategic planning, conservation, heritage, the Local Development Framework, county and regional partnerships, the transformation programme, development control, Port of Boston, regeneration and media.

Bin hard at work all day!

Whew!
 As another example, Councillor Mike Brookes (right)  will take on responsibility for refuse and recycling, street cleansing, parish councils, democratic services, performance and improvement, grounds maintenance and green waste.
The poor man will never get any rest!
The remaining five members of the cabinet are equally burdened, and we have to say that we never realised that such a wide range of skills could be commanded by so few people.
Or can they?
The thumbnail sketches painted by the candidates themselves told us little about the talents they might bring to running a local authority
“I have lived in Boston all my life” may well be a sign of poor judgement to some people … rather than a ringing endorsement of their suitability to steer the direction of a multi million pound department.
Perhaps a little more salesmanship from the ruling group is needed to persuade voters that the square pegs are in the square holes - and not vice versa.
Something else that we have mentioned before is the business of the leadership itself.
Wednesday’s meeting will appoint the leader – a rubber stamping task apparently – but from this year, the leadership rules for Boston … and every other council for that matter … have undergone some changes.
Councillor Bedford has “clarified” his position as leader of the council, saying he is dedicated to the job for the next two years at least. Beyond that he said he will have to rethink once Lincolnshire County Council elections had been held.
However, the council has adopted a new leadership model under government changes which establish certain requirements.
One of these says that once the leader is elected, he or she will be remain in office for the four year term corresponding to his or her term as councillor.
The rules go on to say that during his/her term of office, the Leader may cease to be Leader by virtue of death or disqualification, but may only be removed from office by a council resolution.
The rules allow for no halfway houses.
If Councillor Bedford is obliquely hinting that he plans to retire from politics,
If that is the case, then surely, he is breaking the letter – or at least the spirit of the new rule which stipulates a four year term if he does not plan to complete one at this stage of the game.
These requirements have not been drawn up for fun.
They are designed to take some of the sparring out of politics and guarantee a decent period of stability for the taxpayers.
A leader with a four year term has space in which to plan, and a decent timescale in which to carry out those plans.
Halve that time, and there is the risk of rushing to get things done – in case a different leader decides to change things around. There is also the risk of the appearance of those political vultures which begin to circle when they know that a departure is imminent and create unnecessary distractions from the job in hand.
Boston is not some sort of medieval fiefdom to be handed from one feudal lord to another. It is a place to be cherished and run in the best interests of the people.
Boston now has a second chance – and so do the Conservatives. Let’s hope they don’t waste it.

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PS: Unusually, we also posted a blog over the weekend. It appears immediately below today’s offering, or you can go to it by clicking here.