Dear Friends,

1. We are just over 100 signatures away from getting a Full Council debate according to the Councils rules. Please if you can, share the petition and help people sign up. 

2. I've created a group on facebook for people interested in working together to challenge plans about the Civic Hall and to provide updates. 

Please join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/savethecivichall

3. The Cabinet papers for the Council meeting on Wednesday have been published. If you want to speak you have until tomorrow to ask the Council to register to speak.

The link to the papers are: https://www.nuneatonandbedworth.gov.uk/meetings/meeting/2603/cabinet

I am really concerned that Councillors have decided to do this immediately and not even look at alternatives. They have used special rules to circumvent the Overview and Scrutiny Process. The reasons for justification given in the message re: Special Urgency are very poor.

The report to cabinet is 3 pages long. It is disgraceful that there is so little detail. The Director of Public Services is also away until next week so cant be asked about anything prior to Wednesdays Cabinet or his report. He wont even be at the meeting I assume. 

It is said there is no implications under the Equality Act, but what about the Changing Places toilets?

From reading the report, and the revelation of secret or closed meetings at the Council, and private information shared with me - I am now confident that Councillors knew before the elections that they planned to close the Civic Hall. There is no way this decision was made last week. The way it is being rushed through is reckless, and is clearly down to a plan that they had all along. 

If the Civic was going to reopen like Voters were told and it wasnt being closed, then there would have been a plan in place. There hasnt been. Thats poor management of a Community Asset.

It is also notable that the Council wont spend £1m on the Civic Hall but have borrowed millions to build a hotel in Nuneaton. That matters because contrary to the assumptions in the report, this isnt about money, its about ideology. 

What is most striking is that decommissioning is spoken about but there is no mention of a plan to rebuild the Civic Hall!