Chairman Cllr Sebastian Kindersley,
Liberal Democrat
Since 02 May 2013 Vice chairman Cllr Mandy Smith,
Conservative
Since 02 May 2013 Leader of the Conservative group Cllr Steve Count,
Conservative Leader of the Liberal Democrat group Cllr Lucy Nethsingha,
Liberal Democrat Seats 69 (36 needed for a majority) Political groups Largest party
Conservative Party (32)
Official Opposition
Liberal Democrat (14)
Other opposition parties
UKIP (10)
Labour Party (8)
Independent (5) CEO Gillian Beasley (19 Oct 2015–) Founded 1997, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom Type of business Non-metropolitan county council Seat 69 (36 needed for a majority) Voting system First-past-the-post voting Profiles | ||
Cambridgeshire County Council is the county council of Cambridgeshire, England. The council consists of 69 councillors, representing 60 electoral divisions. Since the 2013 local elections, no party has overall control of the council, with the Conservative group running a minority administration. The council meets at Shire Hall in Cambridge. It is a member of the East of England Local Government Association.
Contents
Cambridgeshire county council meeting 14th october 2014
History
Cambridgeshire County Council was first formed in 1889 as a result of the Local Government Act 1888, as one of two county councils covering Cambridgeshire; the other was the Isle of Ely County Council. In 1965 the two councils were merged to form Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely County Council.
This arrangement lasted until 1974 when, following the Local Government Act 1972, Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely was merged with Huntingdon and Peterborough to form a new non-metropolitan county of Cambridgeshire under the control of a newly constituted Cambridgeshire County Council. The first elections to the new authority were in April 1973, and the council took office on 1 April 1974.
From its recreation in 1974 until 1998 the county council administered the entire county of Cambridgeshire. In 1998 Peterborough city council became a unitary authority, thus outside the area of the county council. For ceremonial, geographic and certain administrative purposes however, Peterborough continues to be associated with Cambridgeshire, including sharing a Chief Executive Officer.
Composition
The council consists of 69 councillors, elected to four year terms, representing 60 electoral divisions. The Conservative Party is the largest party represented on the council, but lost overall control at the 2013 election.
At the first meeting since the 2013 election, a motion from the Liberal Democrat group was passed committing the Council to change its Governance model to the "Committee System" from May 2014. The first draft of the constitutional changes recently went to the Council's Resources and Performance Overview & Scrutiny Committee.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms were granted on 1 November 1976. The blazon reads: "Or three Palets wavy alternating with two Palets Azure a Bordure Gules flory on the inner edge Or; the Shield ensigned by a Mural Crown Or." The motto is 'CORDE UNO SAPIENTES SIMUS' which translates as "With one heart let us be men and women of understanding".
Lender option borrower option loans
The council has long term lender option borrower option loans (LOBOs) totalling £79.5 million with Barclays, Dexia and Siemens Financial Services.