The final member of Reform UK's panel to run Warwickshire County Council is set to be confirmed on Tuesday. 

A second public session for new leader Cllr Rob Howard to appoint cabinet members has been scheduled for 10am on Tuesday, June 10.

It is to announce who will fill the final vacancy on the cabinet, that of portfolio holder for transport and planning which is one of the most public-facing roles on the council.

The postholder will be the council's political lead on highways, road safety, HS2 works, parking and infrastructure planning around housing. Their sign-offs and decisions typically elicit more questions and scrutiny from the public than other areas of the council's work.

Usually, cabinet appointments are made on the day the new council is rubber stamped, a meeting that happened on May 16, but Cllr Howard was not present, subsequently confirming that he was on a holiday booked a number of months prior to his election. 

A leader's session was held on May 30 to appoint eight out of the nine proposed cabinet positions but transport and planning was left vacant, much to the disappointment of political rivals.

Cllr George Cowcher was among them, claiming the delay had left the council "rudderless on a key issue" for too long. 

Cllr Howard confirmed on May 30 that the role was "still being discussed" with a prospective candidate who was "doing some due diligence on the matter, making sure they can do it".

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The announcement comes ahead of the new cabinet addressing council business in public for the first time little more than 48 hours later at Shire Hall on Thursday (June 12, 1.45pm).

Among the matters being considered by the new politicians in charge is the council's financial outturn for 2024-25 which shows that £24.753 million more than planned was spent on delivering council services across the financial year. 

The overall shortfall ended up below £2 million due to the planned use of reserves – pots of money kept aside for a rainy day – reliance on investment funds and utilising the statutory override for the dedicated schools grant (DSG), a national initiative leant on by most councils to ringfence shortfalls in education funding rather than impacting other services to cover the bill. 

They will also assess the council's end-of-year performance data, decide on funding for improvements to schools in Stratford-on-Avon, Polesworth, Upper Tysoe, Welford-on-Avon and Warwick and consider approval for the council to procure contracts for garden waste composting.