Politics
Like many other shire districts, authority over North West Leicestershire is shared between the district council and the county council. Areas of responsibility of the district council include local planning, building control, council housing, refuse collection, recycling, and some leisure services and parks.
The district council is currently controlled by 38 councillors who are elected every four years; the last election took place in May 2011 and saw the Conservatives hold onto control after previously winning it for the first time since its creation in 1973. The current political make-up of the council is as follows:
| Political party | Seats | Current Council (2011–2015) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Conservative | 21 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Labour | 16 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Liberal Democrat | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The council has a five-member executive known as the Cabinet which is made up of councillors who have special responsibilities and power. As the Conservatives won overall control of the council in 2007, they hold all of the seats on the cabinet.
| Position | Councillor | Respective Ward | |
| Leader of the Council | Richard Blunt | Appleby | |
| Deputy Leader | Alison Smith | Kegworth & Whatton | |
| Portfolio Holder for Community Services | |||
| Portfolio Holder for Planning and Engagement | Trevor Pendleton | Kegworth & Whatton | |
| Portfolio Holder for Housing and Customer Services | Roger Bayliss | Ashby Holywell | |
| Corporate Portfolio Holder | Nicholas Rushton | Breedon | |
Read more about this topic: North West Leicestershire
Famous quotes containing the word politics:
“I believe you to be a brave and a skillful soldier, which, of course, I like. I also believe you do not mix politics with your profession, in which you are right.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“While you’re playing cards with a regular guy or having a bite to eat with him, he seems a peaceable, good-humoured and not entirely dense person. But just begin a conversation with him about something inedible, politics or science, for instance, and he ends up in a deadend or starts in on such an obtuse and base philosophy that you can only wave your hand and leave.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)