The Sprout

Cllr De'Ath Answers Your Questions

Posted by kit-kat from Cardiff - Published on 21/05/2015 at 10:31
1 comments » - Tagged as Culture, Education, Environment, People

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Last Thursday (14th May 2015), I met with Cabinet Member Councillor De'Ath whose portfolio includes Youth Engagement and Crime in Cardiff.

The councillor has very strong views about the future of Cardiff; has over the past fifteen years tried to do his best for the city and will strive try to do so in the future. Before my privileged meeting many young people submitted questions to theSprout for the interview, and this is what he had to say on the matter.

Sam P on Facebook asked, "Do people have the right to complain about the current political situation if they are not engaged in it (e.g. they don't vote)?" Cllr De'Ath said that people are more than welcome to bring up their own concerns with the Council even if you don't vote: "It is vital to hear everyone's opinion," he said.

On theSprout website, we heard from Tom W who asked, "As a young person, how exactly can I get my voice heard at the highest levels of Council?"

Councillor De'Ath said that there are many ways to get your voice heard including emailing Cabinet members (senior council members) personally or turning up to meetings/surgeries with your local district councillor. Email addresses and info on surgeries can be found by clicking on your councillor's page.

TheSprout also heard from pupils of St.Illtyd's High School. There were many varied questions but a main feature was the community in general including closure of schools, libraries and leisure centres.

In response to a specific question about closure of local libraries Cllr De'Ath replied saying that not all the council funding just comes from council taxes, most comes from parliament which, with cuts, have been severely reduced. The Council's response to this is to consider building facilities such as Hubs which are super-centres, which may have a library and a gym and much more, Cllr De'Ath feels that this is an appropriate compromise.

One person asked why only one "super school" exists in Cardiff, in answer to this question there will actually be two Cardiff super schools, Eastern High, which is now open and Western High (set to replace Michaelston Community College and Glyn Derw).

Another particular question related to schools in need of attention, Cllr De'Ath said that there are many wonderful schools in Cardiff but over the years some now need a little more attention; this is something that is always being monitored.

I asked Cllr De'Ath about crime rates in Cardiff and am happy to report that the amount of crime is dropping by 38% even though the population in Cardiff increases every year, on average by 12.5%.

Cllr De'Ath has very strong opinions about Cardiff youth having their say. He said that he considers that, like the Scottish referendum, the general election voting age should be lowered to sixteen.

The full interview will be published soon but in the meantime, always check out theSprout; in the run up to the election there was a poll and you could have had your say in who you think should have won!

Also keep an eye out for Cardiff Debate, Cardiff Citizen's Panel and the Ask Cardiff Survey for ways to have your say.

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Events /// May 2015's Sprout Editorial Group Meeting

Info /// Law & Rights /// Crime

Info /// Your World /// Politics

Related Article: What Would You Ask Cllr De'Ath?

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