From HARA

PETITIONS
The Council has now Proposed Changes to Hillingdon’s Petition Scheme
https://modgov.hillingdon.gov.uk/documents/s66975/260709%20-%2006%20-%20Report%20of%20Head%20of%20Democratic%20Services.pdf

The Hillingdon Alliance of Residents’ Associations has launched a petition regarding proposed changes to the Council’s Residents’ Petition Scheme, which will be voted on by all Councillors at the full Council meeting on Thursday 9th July.

The proposals would increase local and planning petition thresholds from 20 signatures to 50, and borough wide petitions from 100 to 500. Automatic petition hearings would also be removed and replaced with either a written response or a site visit.

At last month’s Cabinet meeting, the Council spoke about increasing transparency, improving visibility and reinforcing accountability so that residents can have greater confidence in decision making. As the umbrella body representing residents’ associations across Hillingdon, we believe it is reasonable to ask whether significantly raising petition thresholds and removing automatic public hearings aligns with that commitment.

Petitions are one of the few formal mechanisms through which residents can collectively raise concerns and secure direct engagement with elected Members in a public forum.

We invite residents to review the petition and sign it – see https://www.change.org/hillingdon-petition-changes