Conservative councillors have responded to resident demands for a more responsive council by submitting a motion that would mean Merton had to act on concerns raised by the public via Twitter. At just 134 characters long, the Conservative motion is thought to be the first ever 'Tweetable' motion debated by Merton Council.
"Merton Council must listen to residents more and resolves to engage with their concerns through Twitter to achieve this. #Mertonlisten"
A number of residents have complained in recent months that the council refuses to respond to their tweets on a whole range of Council services, including litter, fly tipping, street lighting, parks, noise pollution and anti-social behaviour. However, the Labour-run council has so far refused to change its approach despite being questioned by one concerned resident at the September Council meeting.
Cllr Hamish Badenoch, who drafted the motion after taking up residents' complaints, said:
"Just like the internet before, social media is changing how residents interact with service providers. Many people now tweet rather than phone, write or email an organisation because it's instant and better fits their busy lifestyles.
"Merton's Labour-run council is spending millions on its so called customer contact project but what's the point if it won't listen to what residents are saying?
"Various other councils around London have embraced Twitter as an inexpensive way of increasing engagement with their residents and improving democratic accountability. Yet – just as with webcasting - Merton Labour seem to be running scared from greater scrutiny by the very people they were elected to serve."
Many councils across London already act on queries and issues raised by residents via social media. This includes Ealing Council, which has its own dedicated Twitter account for customer service queries, as well as Lambeth, Hillingdon and Harrow among others.