Prior to proceeding into the business of the agenda, the Mayor asked Members and Officers to join him in a two minutes silence, as a mark of respect to the recent passing on of Councillor Philip White, former Cabinet Member and member of BCBC for the Caerau Ward and Sir David Amess, Conservative MP for Southend West.

The Mayor then added that words were not enough to express the extent of the very sad loss of friend and colleague Councillor White. He added that his thoughts were with his family at this most tragic time, to which he offered his sincere condolences.

The Leader then gave the following tribute on behalf of the Council.

‘All colleagues will have been informed of the sudden passing of our friend and colleague, Councillor Phil White.

As you know, Councillor White was hospitalised with Covid-19. He fought it to the very end, but sadly was lost to the virus late last week.

Phil was passionate about people, his community, and his beliefs long before he became a member of the authority in 2008.

He earned a place in the industrial history and folklore of our nation when he played a crucial role as one of the leading coal miners in the buyout and re-opening of the Tower deep mine. Becoming the first colliery in British history to be owned and run by its own workers it was run successfully and profitably until all the coal reserves were fully mined in 2007.  

I won’t forget how, when the UK Government was conducting their 2006 energy review, he sat alongside Tyrone O’Sullivan and NUM Secretary Wayne Thomas to address the Select Committee on Welsh Affairs at the House of Commons. Phil was not backward in coming forward when he believed in an issue, and he certainly made his views known on that occasion.

It was shortly after this that he stood for election and became the representative for the community of Caerau and Nantyffyllon.

Councillor White’s qualities quickly saw him appointed to the position of Cabinet Member for Communities.

He continued to serve as a Cabinet member throughout the majority of the thirteen years he served as a councillor, and until he retired from the role last year, he was most recently our Cabinet Member for Social Services and Early Help.

This was, of course, only the tip of the iceberg when it came to Councillor White’s public service.

Among the many responsibilities that he fulfilled, Councillor White was an enthusiastic and active council champion for both older people, and for children and young people. This including chairing our Corporate Parenting Committee and becoming a passionate vice-chair of our Fostering Panel. He was a keen mental health advocate and proud to represent us on Bridgend Care and Repair and the Welsh Local Government Association.

At Nantyffyllon Primary, he was a chair of governors and the school described him in their tribute to him as a hugely loyal and supportive friend to staff and pupils, a dedicated and valued member of the Nantyffyllon family and will be a huge loss to our school community.

Councillor White offered tireless service, and I know only too well that he did so while battling with significant health issues of his own. Despite this, he never once allowed it to prevent him from carrying out his responsibilities, and his dedication proved to be an inspiration.

In the days since his passing was announced, we have been inundated with messages of condolences and tributes from a wide range of partners as well as individuals across all political parties.

They have all made it very clear that Phil was a respected and well-liked elected representative, and a gentleman.

I won’t quote any individuals, but to give you an idea of the regard in which he was held, the WLGA commented that ‘Phil was a great character. Larger than life with great humour, he was hugely supportive of us, and he will be missed by his many friends’.

Similarly, the Cwm Taf regional partnership board summed up the thoughts of many when they said that Phil was ‘passionate about supporting people. He worked tirelessly to make a huge difference, by representing, empowering and standing up for his community.’  

Serving alongside Councillor White was a real pleasure and a privilege. He always offered fantastic support to his colleagues especially our staff and workers, served the people of the county borough to the best of his abilities, and will be greatly missed by all who knew and worked alongside him.

He will of course, most of all, be most deeply missed as a loving and loved husband, son, father and grandfather.

With the flag outside the Civic Offices in Angel Street flying at half-mast to mark the passing of one of our own members, all that remains for me to say is that, on behalf of us all, we offer our heartfelt condolences to Phil’s devastated family and friends and especially to his widow Irene, his mother, his children, and his grandchildren’.

Further tributes to Councillor White were given in turn by the Deputy Leader, Councillors RC Collins, G Howells, CE Smith, RE Young, A Hussain, Alex Williams, MC Voisey, G Thomas and J Radcliffe.

The Mayor concluded, by stating that many wonderful words had been spoken by Members, in tribute to a dear colleague who would be sadly missed.