BATTLE lines have been drawn between Weymouth Town Council and Dorset Council amid a funding row for a commemoration event marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day.
Dignitaries from Dorset Council have been 'uninvited' to a beacon lighting ceremony as part of the D-Day commemoration after town councillors expressed their anger at a lack of funding from the bigger authority to help run events.
Weymouth Town Council previously agreed to host an event for the 80th anniversary of D-Day on behalf of Dorset Council, which had chosen Weymouth as the destination to host commemorations for the whole county.
The town council allocated £5,000 towards various activities to run on Thursday, June 6 to mark the milestone event and planned to work alongside Portland Town Council and Dorset Council to coordinate events for a once-in-a-generation occasion.
The town council requested £4,500 from Dorset Council.
At a meeting of the full council, town councillors were left furious after Dorset Council only offered £1,500 to help run the activities, leaving the town council with an extra £11,300 needed to fund all options.
Town councillors said the decision was an "insult" and a "slap in the face" to the town council and residents.
Cllr Ryan Hope, chair of the environment and services committee said: "I am very disappointed to hear the contribution from Dorset Council.
"If they want to use Weymouth to host the county's D-Day celebrations, then pay.
"Otherwise I am not happy to support proposals to invite their dignitaries to the Nothe Fort (which local residents would have to pay for).
"I cannot support this with that minimal presented by Dorset Council and I would recommend removing that from the plans."
Cllr David Gray added: "As a Dorset Councillor, I am ashamed.
"If this £1,500 comes with strings, we should tell them to keep it.
"I am not in favour of leaving the door open to Dorset Council, they have had their chance.
"It is a smack in the face, we should say this is the event we are hosting on our own for Weymouth and Weymouth residents, who are paying for it, you [Dorset Council] are not invited."
Cllr Christine James, Armed Forces Covenant Champion, said: "It is a bit of an insult, I think Dorset Council members should be excluded if they don't want to contribute.
"If they wish to come down as a visitor then they can come down and spend their pennies here."
Events agreed by the council include working with the Nothe Fort to host two early evening sessions where access to the fort is free for the local community.
These sessions can accommodate up to 400 visitors at one time and will feature a D-Day exhibition, entertainment and potential talks or workshops.
A ticketed beacon lighting event for dignitaries will also take place with 100 tickets made available to the public.
The event accommodated a maximum of 400 visitors, with an extra 300 tickets set to be allocated to dignitaries including Dorset Council councillors.
In light of the funding offered, Cllr Hope proposed that Dorset Councillors be uninvited to the beacon lighting.
Cllr Hope said: "My recommendation is that we meet the full requirements for the proposed activities but we exclude Dorset Council involvement from the beacon lighting ceremony and we offer it fully to our residents.
"The number of dignitaries Dorset Council wants to send down to our event means limited tickets for residents.
"I would rather see those go to local veterans and I would happily give my ticket up to one of them."
The proposal to reject the £1,500 from Dorset Council, rescind the invite for dignitaries and for the town council to fund the extra money needed to run the event was unanimously agreed by councillors.
A spokesperson for Weymouth Town Council said afterwards: "Weymouth Town Council agreed to earmark £12,800 towards D-day commemorations in Weymouth. This will include a beacon lighting event at the Nothe Fort with a focus on local community and military representatives.”
A Dorset Council spokesperson said: "Dorset Council’s Chairman’s office has a limited annual budget each year to share among organisations across Dorset.
"In this instance, the Chairman’s office approached Weymouth Town Council to suggest a joint D-Day beacon lighting event.
"A financial contribution of £1,500 was offered towards the costs, which the town council has chosen not to accept."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel