Annabelle Blackmore - UK Media Comments - Page 2
BERMUDA
COUNCILLOR STAYS PUT
By Nic North
A COUNCILLOR has refused to step down, despite moving to Bermuda for two years.
Tory Annabelle Blackmore was elected in May but left Britain weeks
later when her husband was sent to work on the Atlantic
island. Although she will be more than 3,500 miles away, Mrs Blackmore insists she will
still act for her ward on Maidstone
Council and says she will not be claiming travel or phone expenses. She added: "With
excellent modern communications, I
believe I can work effectively."
Councillors aren't prevented from living abroad.
Tory council leader Eric Hotson said: "It's not ideal but it's
only temporary and we'll welcome her back because she's an ideal
councillor."
BLAG OF THE WEEK
A Conservative councillor from Kent has found an enviable loophole in
her conditions of employment. It seems that to qualify
as a local councillor all you need to do is turn up to one council meeting every six
months.
So three weeks after Annabelle Blackmore was elected to Maidstone Borough Council in May,
she moved to Bermuda.
"It is wonderful to be able to follow the events of home on the website and to be
certain that life in the beautiful village of
Marden continues along its merry path," she laughed last month from the beach.
Communication by email is now essential. But opposition members fear that even this meagre
contact will progressively
decline, until the best they can hope for is an occasional handful of Bermuda cents
towards the latest whist drive, and the odd
Wish You Were Here postcard for Ann Widdecombe featuring a topless woman kissing an
elderly man in national dress.
Her supporters maintain that Cllr Blackmore can carry out her duties adequately from
Bermuda, and offer Yalding inhabitants a
representativewith minimal tan-lines. Others have been vocally hoping that she strays into
the Bermuda Triangle.
Meanwhile, disgruntled local residents have been spotted wearing the slogan 'I Voted At
The Local Elections And All I Got Was
This Lousy T-Shirt'.
Here's a quick comparison so you can make up your own minds.
28C
13
76
Bermuda Cathedral, pink coral sands, Old
State House, Gombey dancing, cassava pie
Bikini, factor 12, Bermuda shorts
1
19C
10
0
River Medway, Meridian TV studios,
teenagers with prams
Jeans, Ben Sherman shirt, white tracksuit
bottoms, packet of 10 Superkings
50+
Hours of daylight
Number of major beaches
Principal sights
Typical items of dress
Number of resident Kent
councillors
to Bermuda.
Annabelle Blackmore was elected to Maidstone Borough Council in May as a Conservative
member for the Marden and Yalding ward.
But she left Kent a few weeks later when her husband was sent on secondment to
Bermuda by his employers.
Mrs Blackmore said she was confident she could carry out her duties despite being almost
3,500 miles away.
She said: "With the modern telecommunications available to us at present, I believe it is
still possible for me to work effectively.
"We have an email service and I can be reached by fax and telephone.
"I'm not asking anyone to call me overseas - I understand there is quite a cost and I'm
more than willing to call people back."
Mrs Blackmore said she hoped to be back in the UK every two months and expected to
return on a permanent basis within two years.
The councillor says she will return every two months from Bermuda
She said she would attend at least one council meeting in every six consecutive months,
as required under the rules, and planned to contest her seat at the next election. She
had not known about her husband's secondment to Bermuda when she stood for the
post.
Councillor Eric Hotson, Tory leader for Maidstone Borough Council, said he supported Mrs
Blackmore's decision.
"It certainly isn't ideal but there are three councillors for Marden and the other two
councillors will do their work," he said.
"It is a temporary secondment and I'm looking forward to her coming back because she
is an ideal young, local, lady candidate."
He said he had not been contacted by any members of the public unhappy with the
situation, but would be meeting parish councillors to allay their concerns.
Councillor Eric Hotson
Bermuda.
Cllr Annabelle Blackmore (pictured) was elected as a
Conservative member of Maidstone Borough
Council in May.
However, a few weeks ago she decamped to Bermuda, when her husband was offered a
secondment opportunity on the Atlantic island.
Despite the distance, Mrs Blackmore is determined to continue with
her council duties. "With the
modern telecommunications available to us at present, I believe it is still possible for
me to work
effectively,” she said.
Council rules require Mrs Blackmore to attend at least one full
meeting every six months, a
requirement she is happy to commit to. She claims that she will return to the UK at least
once every
two months and in themeantime will communicate with her constituents by fax, e-mail and
the
telephone. She also plans to contest the next council election.
looking forward to her coming back because she is an ideal young, local, lady candidate", he said. He did, however,
acknowledge that the situation was “not ideal” Photo ©www.maidstone.gov.uk
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• Updates • Marden Online Soapbox Comment • UK Media Comment • World Media CommentThis page was last updated on 23 October 2003. All information is given in good faith. No responsibility can be accepted for errors or omissions. Marden Online is copyright Richard Wells ©2003
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