to think that Jackie Weaver is a hero to feminism?

[PyongyangKipperbang]

Because I refuse to believe that those appalling men would have spoken to another man the way they attempted to shout her down. She handled herself so beautifully.

Frankly I think she deserves to be Dame Jackie Weaver for services to common sense!

This is the prequel meeting (or sequel using stars wars terminology). They go straight from this meeting into the infamous meeting.

Extract from a local newspaper article.

I have subsequently submitted a Freedom of Information request to Cheshire East council, which has been accepted and the response is due by 17th February 2021.

I have received confirmation today that an investigation into the conduct and behaviour of Handforth Parish Council is being carried out by Cheshire East Council's Committee for Standards. The investigation started in July 2020 and is expected to be completed in the next 3 to 4 weeks.

Apparently, three councillors, Brian Tolver, Aled Brewerton and Barry Burkhill tried to suspend the clerk Ashley Comiskey Dawson at an employment committee meeting held on November 4th last year. However, he was reinstated at a meeting in January as this was a decision which could only be made by the full Parish Council.

Jackie Weaver is the Chief Officer of the Cheshire Association of Local Council and she had been asked to step in and support Handforth Parish Council in light of the complaints and investigation into them.

Good work parker 👍

It is interesting that there are some reactionaries who think the big story here is a council officer ejecting elected councillors from a meeting. The important point to remember is that given neither the council's chair or vice-chair actually formally started the meeting and instead behaved like disruptive dickheads, it was, legally, at that point just a bunch of people of zoom. Once they were ejected a new chair was formally elected for the meeting and they meeting was formally opened. That chair agreed that the disruptive individuals not be allowed into the formal meeting unless they gave assurances that they would behave, which they didn't.

Jackie did exactly the right thing in order to ensure that the business of the committee could be conducted in an orderly fashion. Which is far more important for democracy than allowing a small group of councillors to continue to hold the whole council to ransom and prevent it from doing any business.

Should add that the action of the new chair to continue to exclude the disruptive individuals is totally in line with the standing orders that were so forcefully demanded to be read and understood.

The man on Alex’s iPad needs some anger management lessons. If this wasn’t on zoom then Jackie would have been in some village hall with these nasty men. Aled is a nasty piece of work.

@HenriettaHeffalump, glad someone else thought that, made me chuckle. However this guy was really quite vicious in his tone of voice.

[quote lotusbell]@HenriettaHeffalump, glad someone else thought that, made me chuckle. However this guy was really quite vicious in his tone of voice.[/quote]
What the Withnail and I thing?

Yes, that rancid little shit, Aled, sounded like a rabid dog when he went off. I really hope there are some repercussions. Anyone defending these people...seriously ?

I stand with Jackie Weaver aka Britney Spears.

I've watched it a few times, it's hilarious and also brilliant the way she stays so calm.
READ THEM AND UNDERSTAND THEM bloke looks so pathetic the way he keeps bobbing into view...I'M IN CHARGE
I'm sure he's a joy to live with...

Men were hideously behaved, good for her for kicking him out!

[quote rwalker]@AStudyinPink
But isn’t the role of the clerk to ensure the business of the council is conducted properly? How is screaming at people in any way ‘proper’? How can a meeting happen like that?

I fully get your point but when your in charge even if people are being arseholes you mange and defuse the situation not make it worse.

When dealing with conflict the first thing you do is listen let them get there point across then deal .
I'm not defending them but some of the things she did was just pouring petrol on the fire .[/quote]
I agree.

It wasnt a blueprint in how to conduct meetings at all

A nice bit of theatre for the general public to see, but she needed to have told the councillors beforehand that she was there in a support role only, tell them the boundaries of what she could and could not do in the actual meeting, and not overstep her role in the actual meeting.

I think she was fabulous. Just a calm 'nope'.
Jackie for PM!

I'd be in favour of all meetings being held by zoom in future. The ability to eject arseholes so effectively without needing to call the police is a major bonus. I've been subjected to some appalling chest beating behaviour in the past. And like Jackie Weaver, was accused of bullying on one occasion after having to stand up to it to allow the meeting to continue.

In the long run, it does the electorate no favours. Councils like this cannot get clerks to work for them, and then achieve nothing for the residents.

It is however not entirely an issue of sexism. They were as badly behaved to the previous, male, clerk. This is fairly sex neutral toxic entitlement, bullying everyone who doesn't agree with them.

Re the 'not attending a meeting because one hasn't been called' issue...

If a Cllr doesn't attend for 6 months, AND THE COUNCIL HASNT GIVEN THEM DISPENSATION, they automatically lose their seat.

In this case, a Cllr hadn't attended for five months, then Covid happened meaning the sixth month meeting didn't happen. So that is quite an odd situation to decide on, and could easily be strongly debated.

However this council didn't seem to be holding any virtual meetings. I'm not sure whether business was being done without full scrutiny by councillors and electorate- email decisions- or whether business wasn't being done. They would have been warned they 'must' get meetings organised.

"She is not the proper officer!!" say a small minority on Mumsnet 🤭. How embarrassing.

Jackie for PM! She is my hero. Those men were definitely trying to bully her. They are used to being in charge, (one actually kept yelling "I'm in charge" ), and become aggressive when they realised they were no longer in charge. Classic.

she needed to have told the councillors beforehand that she was there in a support role only, tell them the boundaries of what she could and could not do in the actual meeting, and not overstep her role in the actual meeting

Did she? In order to not be yelled at, insulted and told to shut up?

I think not.

But Jackie is only a clerk- whose role it is to take minutes- and she didn't have the authority to cut people out of the meeting, whatever anyone says

Not sure how it works, but could she have had authority beforehand from the people who called the meeting?

In any event, what she did was authorised after the event by the vote not to let the idiots back in.

@HenriettaHeffalump

The "READ THEM AND UNDERSTAND THEM" guy reminds me so much of the police officer in Withnail and I... "GET IN THE BACK OF THE VAN"

Thank you! It's been bugging me for days, wondering what it reminds me of.

@HenriettaHeffalump

"She is not the proper officer!!" say a small minority on Mumsnet 🤭. How embarrassing.

Jackie for PM! She is my hero. Those men were definitely trying to bully her. They are used to being in charge, (one actually kept yelling "I'm in charge" ), and become aggressive when they realised they were no longer in charge. Classic.

Wasn't "I'm in charge" Bruce Forsyth's saying? He made a record of it but used it much later in The Generation Game and The Price is Right.

@DobbyTheHouseElk

The man on Alex’s iPad needs some anger management lessons. If this wasn’t on zoom then Jackie would have been in some village hall with these nasty men. Aled is a nasty piece of work.

I agree, is that the ‘read them and understand them’ guy. I think he is quite sinister and has most likely perpetrated domestic abuse in his time

I think the whole thing is hilarious but it is a poignant example of the patriarchy in daily life - the fact that we are so unshocked by men speaking to a woman in a threatening way, or like she was shit on their shoe. And that said men can go on and say in public that this behaviour was ok. This should be the national conversation once we’ve finished laughing.

I thought Jackie was so dignified to show compassion to the men ‘it’s a shame to laugh at people who have lost it’ - but again as old as time, women adapting to terrible male behaviour. It highlights the issue even better than if she had lost it back.

She is a legend. Calm and authoritative. They would NOT have behaved like that to a man. The nasty little misogynistic bullies showed their true colours. I hope they are deeply ashamed. Well done, Jackie, standing up for women everywhere.

@Arobase

But Jackie is only a clerk- whose role it is to take minutes- and she didn't have the authority to cut people out of the meeting, whatever anyone says

Not sure how it works, but could she have had authority beforehand from the people who called the meeting?

In any event, what she did was authorised after the event by the vote not to let the idiots back in.

It is a total red herring as the meeting of the committee had not formally started at the time Jackie booted the people off. The chair was invited to start the meeting and he refused and was being disruptive so was booted. The vice-chair then began yelling and was disruptive so was booted too. The remaining councillors decided and a chair who formally started the meeting. It is at that point that the committee meeting standing orders on meetings come into effect because there is actually a formal meeting in progress. Before that it was just a bunch of people on zoom so Jackie had every right to boot off disruptive and rude people.

Had to look that up echt! You are correct! He did make a record called I'm in charge! Maybe Aled from Handforth Parish Council is just a fan of Bruce Forsyth and Withnail and I then

I get a feeling that - if the media focus carries on that the “read the standing orders” man won’t come off very well.
They’ve already dug out his LinkedIn profile and it looks suspect as hell to me.

For those who are saying she is just a clerk. Wrong - she is the Chief Officer of the Cheshire Association of Local Council. I’m not sure of the hierarchy but she’s probably senior to the parish councillors.

She was quite right. Those men were complete pricks.