THIS SITE:If a member of a municipal council clearly indicates that he or she is neither interested in nor wants to contribute to the work of the municipal council – nor does he want to participate in meetings for the rest of the election period, then it makes good sense to let the member in question step down.
This was the reasoning of Kenneth Bjerregaard, chairman of the Liberal group in Thisted municipal council, who on Tuesday evening processed a request from the conservative member Per Skovmose to resign from the municipal council.
– There is no room for freewheeling, noted Kenneth Bjerregaard, who emphasized that Per Skovmose’s reasoning for stepping down could not immediately be considered a “reasonable reason”.
– But if you don’t want to participate in the municipal council’s work, it must be possible to say: Out with him, added Kenneth Bjerregaard later.
– The only reasonable reason here is that we believe that the municipal council must be full, said Kenneth Bjerregaard, who helped deliver a majority of 13 votes to meet the request from Per Skovmose.
The 13 votes came from Liberals, Conservatives and New Citizens. The Danish People’s Party and Enhedslisten, each with one vote, did not want to take a position, while the Social Democrats, SF and the Alternative with 11 votes did not want to grant Per Skovmose’s request.
Stock photo: Bo Lehm“/>
With 13 votes in favor and 11 against, Thisted municipal council decided to grant Per Skovmose’s wish to resign from the municipal council. Two members abstained from voting. Stock photo: Bo Lehm
On December 22, Per Skovmose informed mayor Niels Jørgen Pedersen that he wanted to resign from the municipal board with effect from the turn of the year. If the request was not granted, “I hereby cancel all meetings that I am expected / appointed to participate in as a KB member with effect from 1/1-23 and the rest of the election period”, according to the letter to the mayor.
Per Skovmose justified his wish with dissatisfaction with the municipality’s administration and consequent fear of his opportunities to act as a member of the municipal board, a point of view he has also expressed in posts on Facebook.
– We have all accepted the position as municipal politicians. It is a civil ombudsman surrounded by legislation about our rights and duties – and about the possibility of being exempted, said Ulla Vestergaard, chairman of the social democratic group.
She did not find that Per Skovmose’s reasoning met the criteria for exemption.
– A reasonable reason is health considerations, performance of other public duties, business or the like. That is not what we are talking about here, said Ulla Vestergaard.
– The matter is a matter of principle with a personal starting point, but I also do not see a reasonable reason to grant the request. If I said “yes” I would sign the motion of no confidence in the administration, which is the request, said Joachim Plaetner Kjeldsen, Alternativet.
– I do not want to make this a matter of principle, but we cannot have an elected person sitting who has no interest in participating in the work. And I cannot support the distrust that is expressed towards the administration, said Jens Otto Madsen, EL.
Morten Bo Bertelsen, SF, wanted to test what is possible or not possible.
– I believe that it is contrary to the wording of section 103 of the Municipal Elections Act, he said with reference to the section which lists what is considered reasonable grounds for wanting to be exempted from membership of the municipal council.
