Government called to scrap 'discredited' Helston Town Council

Mike Hales, who is no longer a member of the group after stepping down saying it "needs young people", has written a damning open letter on the work of Helston Town Council, which he described as "discredited" and having "no ambition."

Helston's mayor John Martin has responded by saying it was "a shame Mr Hales feels this way" about a council that was national runner up Council of the Year in 2017 and was the first in the county to achieve "Quality Gold" status.

In his letter, posted to the A Future Vision for Helston Facebook page, Mr Hales writes: "Surely the more urgent problem in the renaissance of Helston is to persuade the Secretary of State for Local Government to scrap this discredited and largely unelected council and its inadequate town clerk and order new, properly-contested elections.

"Perhaps a volley of letters to the Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP will do the trick.

"You get what you deserve, people of Helston, if you don’t stand up and be counted at elections."

Mr Hales told the Packet he had not written such a letter himself, but was "certainly considering it."

He went on to say in his Facebook post: "Not a single councillor has been properly elected to the council for years, since no elections were held when last due. Empty seats on the council have been filled by their choices."

No poll was held in Helston in the 2017 Cornwall local elections, due to nobody else coming forward to contest the seats. The last full election of the council was in 2013, with the last ward by-election in 2015 won by councillor Dave Potter. Other vacancies have been filled by co-option, due to insufficient numbers requesting an election.

Helston Town Council winning Quality Gold status in 2017

Mr Hale also claimed the council had a "sour disdain for the Helston CIC", claiming it had not "lifted a finger to encourage, collaborate with, or fund the Helston Community Interest Company beyond appointing councillors to its board to stifle and disrupt the company."

He went on to clarify to the Packet that he was actually referring to just one councillor, who he refused to name and said was no longer on the CIC, but claimed the council as a whole was "just carrying on as though the CIC doesn't exist."

"It needs overt support from the council, not a sullen disinterest," he added.

The council has a representative on the board of the CIC, of which other councillors are also members in their own right.

At their January meeting, town councillors agreed in principle to cover up to £500 costs for the CIC's planned community magazine, should advertising revenue fail, and are expected to formally confirm this decision in February.

Mr Hales has been left upset at what he feels is a lack of action over a report he put together for the council almost 12 months ago, called “Historic Helston - A Way Forward”, in which he puts forward free or low cost parking, pedestrianisation or traffic reversal, investment in walking, cycling and public transport improvements, better social media and marketing, improved signage and market stalls as ideas to improve footfall, along with the creation of a CIC funded up to £30,000 over three years.

The CIC since created is a separate body to the town council.

Mr Hales claims his report has "gathered dust ever since," adding that the council has instead "continued to tinker about" redoing the town trail and "cherry-picking" the market proposal.

He claimed that the council had "once again chosen inertia over action; politics over pragmatism; self-interest and self-preservation over ambition for the town they are supposed to represent."

Helston mayor John Martin

Speaking on behalf of the town council, as its chairman, Helston mayor John Martin told the Packet: "It’s a shame that Mr Hales feels this way.

"This is an award-winning council. We had been elected fairly in the previous election by the people of Helston.

"We believe that the town clerk and the members have acted in a way that secures the future of the town with a measured and sustainable approach. The town clerk’s experience is invaluable to the council and our town and the support for and faith in him and the new CIC is wholehearted."

Mr Martin also spoke about Mr Hale's report to the town council, saying: "Each project proposal, including those of the CIC, has to be carefully considered in this austere climate. There is no funding for the bigger projects proposed by Mr Hales.

"There are ideas in his document that are visionary, but we can only take cautious steps until we achieve fairer funding for Cornwall from Westminster."

Helston CIC has also sought to distance itself from the allegations.

A spokesperson for Helston CIC said: "Since his resignation Mike Hales has had no involvement in Helston CIC and his views that he expressed are personal views, and do not reflect the views of the CIC.

"The Helston CIC works closely with the town council and has a very productive working relationship."