Agenda item

Proposed by: Councillor Max Wilkinson and Seconded by: Cllr Flo Clucas

This Council notes:

·                The recent warnings from multinational businesses based in the south west, including Airbus and Honda, that exiting the EU customs union will be a catastrophe for trade and may lead them to relocate their manufacturing outside of the UK.

·                The number of Cheltenham citizens working for businesses that rely on free movement of trade within the European Union.

·                That, according to the Government’s own figures, under all Brexit scenarios the UK will be considerably worse off, not only in terms of international reputation but also the negative social, environmental and economic impact it will have on the people of Cheltenham.

This Council therefore agrees that there should be a ‘people’s vote’ on the final Brexit deal, which should include an option for the United Kingdom to remain a full member of the European Union.

In proposing the motion, Councillor Wilkinson wished to thank those in the public gallery who were in attendance supporting the motion for a people’s vote on the final Brexit deal, a cause which he had been campaigning hard for. He raised concerns about the incompetence of the government over Brexit talks and the fact that many leave voters had made their decision based on inaccuracies.  He feared that the most likely outcome was appearing to be a no deal Brexit supported by the far right. He cited food shortages, the cancelling of leisure and business trips and lengthy traffic jams as his key concerns, as well as the detrimental effect of immigration on public services, having stated that 4000 EU nurses and midwives had already left the NHS.    He further advised that 69% of voters felt that Brexit negotiations were going badly and felt they should be given a second vote now the facts were known. 

In the debate that followed, many Members confirmed that they supported the motion. Noting their key concerns as the number of key industries in Cheltenham who depend upon the skills of non EU citizens and the free movement of knowledge between countries, Erasmus programmes which benefitted many students, and the fact that the NHS was severely understaffed and relied upon EU workers. Concerns were also raised over security given the current climate and the detrimental impact on the hospitality industry, in particular Cheltenham racecourse which welcomed many visitors and riders each year, particularly from Ireland. Many Members shared Councillor Wilkinson’s sentiment that leave voters had made their decision based on deceit and inaccuracies and felt that democracy was about giving people the chance to vote on real facts. They reiterated the fact that the vote on the referendum in 2016 had been extremely narrow and that Cheltenham had voted to remain. Members felt strongly that young people should be given the chance to vote considering that the impacts of Brexit would affect them the most.

Other Members, however, stated that they would not support the motion. They discussed the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and felt that a second referendum would increase this uncertainty, they also felt that a second referendum could undermine peoples faith in future referendums.  They felt that despite the fact the outcome was not the favoured one for some parties, they could not keep holding referendums until a favoured outcome for one particular opinion was achieved. 

In seconding the motion Councillor Clucas felt strongly that no government had the right to take away a persons citizenship. She felt that as it was an advisory referendum the government were not bound by the outcome, particularly considering the Conservatives had lost the general election. She stated that the key issue was the Irish border and the current proposals could not fix that. The Chequers agreement had omitted to mention services which represented the bulk of the UK’s earning potential. She also highlighted the plight of the NHS in the face of Brexit in terms of filling vacancies.

In summing up Councillor Wilkinson referred to the multimillion pound businesses which were being ignored in the Brexit debate. Cheltenham had in 2016 voted to remain in the EU and even more than ever this should not be ignored. With the lack of certainty he strongly believed that any deal should go before Parliament.

A recorded vote having been requested and supported by Members the motion was put to the vote. The motion was approved with 30 for and 7 against.

Voting for : Cllrs Atherstone, Baker, Barnes, Barrell, Boyes, Britter, Brownsteen, Clucas, Coleman, Dobie, Fisher, Harvey, Hay, Hegenbarth, Hobley, Horwood, Jeffries, Jordan, McCloskey, McKinlay, Oliver, Parsons, Payne, Stafford, Sudbury, Wheeler, Whyborn, Wilkinson, Williams, Willingham

Voting against: Cllrs Babbage, Cooke, Harman, Mason, Savage, Seacome, Stennett

Council adjourned from 8.05-8.10 pm