Yesterday evening Tisbury Parish Council hosted its Annual Parish Assembly, News of the hospitality on offer must have spread, for there was an excellent turnout, some Parishioners coming from as far away as West Tisbury. The question on everyone’s mind being was Patrick Duffy, the new Parish Council Chair, any relation of Gordon Brown’s friend, but alas none cared to ask him for fear of embarrassing a man so new in his job.

Questions were however invited, and there are those minded to cause trouble. There was not only the suggestion that ‘Marjory’ the Compost Heap, should be trashed on the basis that despite all the hard work of delivering the project, it was both an environmental and financial disaster (Cost £4646.21 with more investment promised despite that total compost sales are £583.48). BUT TOO’
A question concerning the proposed amalgamation of the Separate Parishes of TISBURY and WEST TISBURY to form but a single Village Parish, managed by only one Parish Council of maybe twelve elected members. There were murmurs of dissent to the left of the Chamber, but apparently such is the way the wind is blowing at County Level, so confederation may well occur.

It is ridiculous that Tisbury has two separate Parish Councils, and pays two Parish Clerks. The sooner the matter is attended the better, for the Status Quo is a waste of our money, and smacks of ‘Councillorships for the boys’. As previously mentioned Parish Councils did not exist until late Victorian times, formed only then to encourage participation in local Government, seemingly the experiment failed, in the manner of every political career.

Even then Confederation was the watch word in Canada. The very fine looking man in the photo above was one of The Fathers of its Confederation, he would have been 185 at the end of this month had he not died prematurely. When appointed Colonial Secretary of Prince Edward Island in 1859, fortuitously he had no seat in the Legislature, but as one Councillor mentioned last evening, holding Office is an inhibition. So too must it be in Parliament under the strictures of the ‘Libcon’ Pact.

There were other Questions asked and answers given, and too the matter of Tisbury Parking was Debated. If any of us might have wondered why our immediate Past Chair was at the Station each morning, he wasn’t collecting train numbers, but counting cars.
Wednesday, 19 May 2010.