The deputy leader of North Yorkshire Council says the authority's financial stability is the "envy of the local authority world" as he announces he is to stand down next week.
Councillor Gareth Dadd has told colleagues he will not seek re-election to the position when the council’s Conservative group holds its annual general meeting on Wednesday.
He will then step down as the councillor for Thirsk — a role he will have held at North Yorkshire Council and its predecessor unitary authority for 22 years — at next year’s local election.
Cllr Dadd became deputy leader and executive member for finance on the former county council in 2015, a position which he continued to hold after local government reorganisation in 2023.
The councillor, who is a retired small business owner, believes one of the council’s biggest achievement during his tenure has been its financial stability.
“We are the envy of the local government world in this country because of our grip on financial matters.
“We’re not out of the woods by any means, and no local authority is, but most councils up and down the country would give their hind teeth to be in the position we are.
“That is despite the shocks, and that’s a polite way of putting it, that we’ve endured and suffered.
“That’s from governments of all colours, I might add, through austerity, initially with the coalition, then various dips from the Tory government, and most certainly, more recently, with the Labour government.”
The councillor acknowledged that some of the decisions taken to strive for that financial stability, in the face of sharp increases in demand for services such as SEND and adult social care, had not always been popular.
The controversy over home-to-school transport still rages two years on.
But he said these tough decisions had allowed the authority to avoid closures of the likes of libraries and leisure centres which other councils had needed to do, as well as maintain services for those most in need,
He added:
“I always said that as deputy leader for finance, and as long as I had breath in my body, I would protect services to those unable to help themselves, and there’s a difference between those unable and unwilling.
“I think we’ve achieved that. We’ve got some of the best services in the country and that’s something to be proud of, but that doesn’t come by magic.
“That comes because we protected and prioritised people’s services and we haven’t played a juvenile political game with it.”
Cllr Dadd admitted there were “a couple of things” the authority could have handled better in recent years, but declined to name them.
One area he believes was a missed opportunity for the council, which he is prepared to comment on, is the number of elected members.
The authority currently has 90 councillors, which will be reduced by just one next year following a review by the Boundary Commission.
He said:
“We should have bitten the bullet on having fewer councillors.
“That’s my personal view — and it’s not a popular view — and we should also properly recompense them to make it more of a full-time role.
“Maybe 70 or something in that area would do, because it does become cumbersome when you’ve got the numbers that we’ve got.
“I don’t know how authorities with in excess of 100 go on.”
Looking to the future of the authority, Cllr Dadd is aware that the political map in North Yorkshire may look significantly different after the elections in May 2027.
At present, the Conservatives need help from independent members to hold on to power, but the rise of Reform could mean different political allegiances will be required if a Tory is to continue as leader or deputy over the next term.
Whoever takes control of the authority next, Cllr Dadd urges them to keep a tight rein on the council’s finances.
“Financial stability is key to everything. If they don’t stick firmly to the mantra of having a good financial grip and just start eating into reserves because decisions are politically unpalatable or uncomfortable, the consequences will be far worse.”
The next deputy leader for the current term will be selected by the Conservative group at next week’s AGM.
Current executive members Mark Crane and Richard Foster have both confirmed to the Local Democracy Reporting Service that they plan to stand for the position.
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