In Havering there is more interest on the doorstep in parking charges, Council Tax, and bin collections, than on immigration.
There is no denying that working practices have changed. But Town Hall bosses should not indulge in foolish experiments at the expense of Council Taxpayers.
We should require Sutton Coldfield Town Council now to be given more control over local services and functions.
The problem for the Council is not that it is taxing too little. It is not that is has been unfairly treated. The difficulty is that it is spending too much.
Those paying the most as a percentage of income are not receiving better services than those paying the least. The burden is greater. The benefits are not.
We often seem to be scared of making the case for less spending, but spending sometimes seems to have no relationship with outcomes.
Also: Welsh Government winds down flagship life sciences investment fund after writing off more than half it’s value.
He will probably get the Conservative nomination, while defeating Labour in the election next May will be more challenging. But doesn’t being a county council leader have more power anyway?
As of 2021, 75 per cent of all councils have declared a climate emergency with varying target dates spawning an endless process of consultations. These projects and schemes all represent time and money that could be devoted to delivering services for residents at value.
If we had a more effective Labour Party here, we could have had a very different result. But the fact is we don’t, so we didn’t.
Such as: reductions for business, such capital allowances to promote investment. And reductions on earnings, such as cuts to National Insurance.
When key performance data finally landed, the results were clear: relative to before the pandemic, most metrics got worse. Spending on agency staff, a key justification for the trial, went up, not down as was intended.
From Sandwell to Solihull, Bromsgrove to Wolverhampton, Dudley to Tamworth, we have been out to help the amazing local teams who have been working so tirelessly to hold and gain Council seats.
The Commissioners have restored good order. But they have failed to tackle profligate municipal spending and the high Council Tax burden on residents that results from it.
Some of my ideas have come about and others haven’t, but it’s more than a whimsical simile that local government turns slower than an oil tanker.