Minutes:
The Chairman made the following announcements:
a) Chairman’s Engagements
Events Attended by the Chairman from Tuesday, 20th October, 2020:
Sunday, 8th November, 2020 Was due to attend the Devizes Town Council Remembrance Day Service, but it was cancelled due to second lockdown. The Chairman laid a wreath in his own time.
Wednesday, 11th November, 2020 West Lavington Remembrance Avenue Tree Planting and unveiling of Memorial stone.
Tuesday, 1st December, 2020 Recorded a YouTube Christmas video message in conjunction with the Lord-Lieutenant, the Leader of Swindon Borough and Lord Talbot, DL, following the cancellation of the County of Wiltshire Carol Service at The Chapel of All Saints, Wardour Castle (Lord Talbot’s family’s former seat).
Monday, 7th December, 2020 Royal Visit of TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall to Salisbury Cathedral to mark the 800th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone.
Events Attended by the Vice-Chairman from Tuesday, 20th October, 2020:
Sunday, 8th November, 2020 Was due to attend the Marlborough Town Council Remembrance Day Service but it was cancelled due to second lockdown. The Vice-Chairman laid a wreath in his own time.
b) New Years Honours
The Chairman announced that a number of Wiltshire residents had received
national recognition in Her Majesty’s New Years Honours’ list in January as
follows:
OBEs had been awarded to:
· Mr. Anthony Price of Malmesbury for services to the Energy Storage Industry;
MBE’s had been awarded to:
· Mrs. Anne Baker of Salisbury for charitable services, particularly during Covid-19;
· Mrs. Mercedes Henning of Edington for services to Education in Wiltshire;
· Mr. Derek Howland of East Tytherley for services to National Mapping;
· Prof. Alan Maryon-Davis ofTisbury for services to Public Health;
· Dr. Joanne Thwaite of Warminster for services to the NHS during the Covid-19 Response;
· Mr. Stephen Trowbridge of Swindon for services to Domiciliary Care during Covid-19;
· Mr. David Waters of Winterbourne Gunner for services to Wildlife Conservation and to the re-introduction of Rare Native Species to the UK;
BEM’s had been awarded to:
· Mr. Terry Bracher of Corsham for services to Heritage and Public Libraries in Wiltshire;
· Mr. Christopher Martin of Ramsbury for services to the community in Ramsbury;
· Revd. Bernard Rumbold of Swindon for voluntary service to Young People;
· Ms. Patricia Trevett, Salisbury, for services to the community in Salisbury during Covid-19.
CVO’s had been awarded to:
· Mr. Peter Troughton, CBE, the Lord-Lieutenant’s husband, for his work with the Royal Collection over the last 15 years.
c) Voting
On the proposal of the Chairman, seconded by the Vice- Chairman, it was,
Resolved:
To suspend Paragraphs 22.6.2-22.6.4 of Part 4 of the Constitution to remove the requirement for automatic recorded votes for non-budgetary items.
d) George McDonic
The Chairman paid tribute to George McDonic, who had passed away on 14 February. Mr McDonic was formerly Chief Planning Officer for Wiltshire County Council and a longstanding chairman of the Wiltshire Historic Trust.
Cllr Jonathan Seed also paid tribute to Mr McDonic.
e) Ian Gibbons
The Chairman announced that the Monitoring Officer, Ian Gibbons would be retiring at the end of May 2021 after more than 33 years’ service with the Council. The Chairman expressed his gratitude to Mr Gibbons for his service and advice to Members and officers over the years.
f) Final Council Meeting
The Chairman announced that with the elections in May 2021 expected to go ahead as scheduled, the meeting would be the final meeting of Full Council for many Members.
The Chairman extended thanks to all Members who would not be returning for their service to the council and the people of Wiltshire over, in some cases, several decades.