Owen Temple

You may spot the literary illusion - OK, I used to be an English teacher - but the title of Graham Greene’s book is a fitting description for the current Durham County Council.

For years the Member Area Panels (MAPs for short) have met to give the chance for county councillors from each district to meet together, discuss issues, allocate resources and plan within their districts. It’s been an essential part of keeping the “local” in local government, so important that it’s enshrined in the constitution of the county council.

Since the last county election, however, none of the MAPs have met. There’s been no official announcement, no change to the constitution, just a deafening silence.

That’s why I’m moving a motion at the county council meeting tomorrow for the MAPs to be re-convened. And I’ve taken the unusual step of writing to every county councillor in Derwentside to ask them to support the motion because there are things we need to be doing, important issues to decide, and not the least important of those is the issue of Consett Sports Centre. Wouldn’t it be a good idea for the Derwentside MAP to meet and hammer out any differences we may have in the interests of ensuring decent sports facilities for Consett?

There are other things to decide, too. Road repairs and the programme for the next financial year could be discussed. Car Parking policy will need to be sorted out by the new authority because it’s too late now for the District Council to face up to it, and the sooner we start talking realistically about that future, the better the chance that we get some action before the town centres in Consett and Stanley are finally strangled to death.

That’s why I hope that every councillor in Derwentside will back the re-formation of the member area panels. And by tomorrow night I’ll know if I’m just a born optimist, or whether most councillors are actually in it to achieve the best for their area just as I am.