MOMENTUM for a referendum on the controversial topic of parishing Swindon has continued to mount following the latest gathering of residents to discuss the matter.

The South Swindon Labour Party hosted a meeting at the Commonweal School on Wednesday evening during which they spoke on the council’s proposal to devolve certain services down to a parish level. Where no parish council currently exists to take these responsibilities on it is proposed a new council be formed.

Chaired by prospective labour ward councillor Jane Milner-Barry, the meeting heard from Swindon Borough councillor Des Moffatt and leader of the Labour group Jim Grant. Councillors Paul Dixon and Nadine Watts completed the panel.

Councillor Moffat (Labour, Rodbourne Cheney) described the matter as being like Pandora’s Box, with some parish council’s within the borough already providing services such as street cleaning, grass cutting a litter picking, meaning it was something the rest of the town had to consider – and it would not go away.

He said: “The council is in serious financial difficulties for a whole number of reasons. One is that there are a lot more older people like me that need looking after each year. Society also expects us to look after and safeguard children. Those duties cost the council around £80 million a year - £63 million for adult social care and £20 million to look after children.”

He explained that it was proposed the council should devolve certain services down to a lower level of government in a bid to save money. No referendum will be held on whether this goes ahead.

Councillor Grant (Labour, Rodbourne Cheney) said he believed that this was a way of raising council tax by the back door. He said: “The only way you can force a referendum on parishing and the subsequent rise in the precept and council tax is to get a change of administration.

“We [the Labour group] are not opposed to parishing, what we are opposed to is this process we are going through.”

He explained that borough councillors would be responsible for setting the new precept in the new parish areas, and if they refused they would be criminally liable.

Both councillors took a number of questions from the floor, with one pensioner asking them what on earth the council was doing with all of his council tax. He said: “I pay more money on council tax a year than I do on electricity and gas and a good amount of my water too, and I can see what I get for that. I have no control over that £1,300 a year which is a large part of my pension.

“I don’t mind paying it. But what the hell are they doing with these vast amounts of money that members of the public are giving them?”

The question of whether a merger between the borough council and Wiltshire Council was in the pipeline also raised, to which Mr Grant said he had been told by the leader of the council last week that there was no question of a merger, only the possibility of the authorities working closer together on certain matters.

Residents also pointed out that there were already a number of petitions already on the go calling for the council to hold a referendum on parishing the rest of the town to give them the chance to have their say.