Mims Davies, MP for Eastleigh, this week introduced a 10 Minute Rule Motion on the governance of Parish Councils, with support from 7 other MPs.
“This bill legislates for how, as we devolve down more powers from central government to local councils, we can ensure that that the 7 principles of public life are adhered to by our elected representatives, bring in DBS checks for parish and town council candidates ensuring that proper safeguarding policies are in place, and end the practice of councillors sitting on multiple parish councils at the same time.
“In the Eastleigh Constituency, we have examples of people sitting on multiple parish councils, for instance someone holding office on both the Bursledon Parish Council and the West End Parish Council. To enable effective local representation, we must make sure that our parish councillors are local to the places that they represent.
“Used properly, as the vast majority of parish councils are, they can make an enormously positive contribution to people's lives, but we must work hard to ensure that in the tiny number of cases where things do go wrong that we have proper scrutiny.”
Mims’s speech may be viewed here https://goo.gl/41UK9L and the full text is available here https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2017-04-18/debates/3D01856A-4FF2-4E9E-9FF1-A81784B4FB6B/ParishCouncilGovernance(PrinciplesOfPublicLife)