Liberal Democrat councillor Ian Shires was ruled out of order when he tried to get a resolution on the doomed Willenhall Leisure Centre through the Children and Young People’s Scrutiny Panel at its meeting on Friday.

Ian asked that the panel to express its concern that the closure of Willenhall Leisure Centre would have an adverse effect on the already hard pressed schools budgets in the Willenhall and Bentley areas as they sort to fund alternative arrangements for swimming, possibly outside the borough in neighbouring Wolverhampton.

Tory chairman, Eddie Hughes, ruled the resolution out of order saying that it was not in the perview of that committee as it came under the remit of Neighbourhoods and Community.

Ian argued that the reference to close Willenhall Leisure Centre was within the Draft Corporate revenue Budget 2010/11 which had been circulated to all members of the Scrutiny Panel as background information and as the decision affected schools budgets it was quite within the Panel’s remit to discuss the issue. The chairman disagreed and ruled the resolution out of order.

Speaking after the meeting Ian said “This is a draft budget put forward by Walsall’s Tory Cabinet for consultation, yet each attempt that has been made by opposition councillors to get a formal resolution expressing concern at the proposed closure has been met with resistance from Tory councillors. What’s the point of consulting if all you want to hear are comments in agreement with the content of the draft budget” concluded Ian.