Pendle councillor - and property firm director - racks up council tax arrears
PLUS: The latest on Eden Project Morecambe
Hello and welcome to The Lancashire Lead.
Today we report on the easternmost point of Lancashire with a Pendle councillor who has neglected to pay his council tax.
The fact that Tom Ormerod, who is a Conservative councillor first elected in 2023, hasn’t paid his bills has even seen him forcefully excluded votes relating to council tax increases - though no reason for that was ever made public.
And from the east to the north, as we report on the public being given the chance, for the first time in a while, to hear more about Eden Project Morecambe.
Tom Ormerod barred from vote over council tax debts
By Jamie Lopez
A Pendle councillor and property firm director has racked up council tax arrears of almost £4,000 dating back to before his election.
Conservative councillor Tom Ormerod owes a total of £3,835 from the past three years, according to documents obtained by The Lancashire Lead.
Cllr Ormerod was elected to represent Vivary Bridge ward in 2023 and was unable to vote on last year’s budget as a result of the arrears.
That’s because it is a criminal offence for a councillor in council tax arrears of at least two months to vote at a meeting of the council where financial matters relating to council tax are being considered.
At the budget meeting in February 2024, apologies were given on his behalf but no reason was offered or made public through other avenues, while other absences were explained - including one councillor who was on holiday in the Caribbean.
The vote for the 2024/25 budget is due to take place in February.
According to Cllr Ormerod’s declaration of interests, he is a director of five businesses - Primet Rose Properties, Rockwood Property Investors, Envirogreen Properties, Primet Rose Stores, and Steven Heyworth News.
Companies House records show that of these, the first has been struck off and the next two have faced and avoided striking off action.
The Tory councillor came to the public’s attention when he was accused of wrongdoing in relation to an alleged assault which occurred outside that shop and was caught on video. A conduct complaint was issued against him but was rejected by the council’s monitoring officer on March 1 and went no further.
According to Pendle Council, Cllr Ormerod’s debt includes £1,153 which should have been paid by March 31, 2022; £547 which was due by March 31, 2023; and £2,135 due by March 31, 2024.
A second councillor, whose name was not disclosed by Pendle Council, owes £14.28 which should have been paid by March 2020.
Cllr Ormerod did not respond to a request for comment from The Lancashire Lead.
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Eden Project community conversation to give people first update of 2025
By Robert Macdonald
Updates on activity around the Eden Project Morecambe are due at a public event taking place in March.
Morecambe’s historic Winter Gardens is the venue for the latest Eden Project Community Conversation on Tuesday, March 4, at 6pm. To attend, people are asked to register in advance using Lancaster City Council’s website.
Previous Eden conversation events have explored ideas for different themes and activities at the new venue, which is expected to have shell-shaped domes and a range of indoor and outdoor spaces. Other conversation topics have included transport links, how the new site will relate to Morecambe’s wider town centre, the local economy, events and other local venues.
The first big face-to-face conversation event was at the Winter Gardens last spring, 2024. Online discussions have been held too.
Eden Project Morecambe was earmarked £50million in levelling-up money by the previous Conservative government, which was confirmed by the new Labour government in the autumn. Eden needs to raise a further £50million through donations, commercial sponsorship and other sources.
Also in the autumn, the new government released a new portion of money, £2.5million, to Eden, to pay for activity this year. That was expected to included detailed design work. Eden bosses said architects, mechanical engineers, landscape designers and theatrical designers are part of a design team looking at details of construction and different types of activities planned for the new centre.
Proposals include exhibitions, research and music concert spaces. The new attraction could include small and large event spaces catering for audiences from 50 up to 6,000 people.
Detailed ground investigations on the Morecambe seafront site are also planned this year. The new Eden site is expected to be finished in 2027 or 2028.
Lancaster University, Lancaster City Council and Lancaster & Morecambe College are among the other organisations involved in the project, one way or another. Education, skills, jobs and scientific research are seen as important elements of the Eden development alongside tourism and regeneration.
Lancashire County Council is also looking at Morecambe town centre’s road system and transport links. Ideas have included developing park-and-ride facilities for Eden visitors near the M6 and or at Heysham, which has been raised by some Lancaster city councillors.
There have also been calls from some city councillors for investment in enhanced railway links and possibly electric battery-operated trains around Morecambe, Heysham and Lancaster.
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Luke, Jamie, Ed, Sophie and the team.