Arun District Council has decided to invest almost £500,000 of local taxpayers’ money on a luxury bed and breakfast in the picturesque town of Arundel in West Sussex.
It would enhance democracy and local accountability, be better value for money for the taxpayer, and be more effective in reducing crime.
Our spending on Children’s Services this year in Middlesbrough will be £56 million – out of an overall budget of around £116 million. We need to reduce the number of children needing our help in the first place.
Rather than a gimmicky new layer of Government it would have been better to adopt a more localist approach of handing powers to existing local authorities.
We have the opportunity to invest in technology that the private sector has been using for decades; it is cheaper than ever and has been tested with our populations already.
This included visits to some of the world’s most oppressive regimes, such as Cuba, China, and Russia. The very same Council that hosted COP26 and declared a climate emergency in May 2019.
In Sidcup, we have just opened the Storyteller – a new home for the town’s library, complete with a cafe. In the New Year, it will be the home of a new three-screen cinema run by the Really Local Group. There has been a huge amount of buzz.
The data shows estimated cost savings to social care of £6.8 million. But of most importance is the impact the technology is having on people’s lives. One resident said “it literally saved my mother’s life”.
Anyone who has spent time in the Netherlands can hardly fail to see the benefits of more cycling; wider pavements and a merciful absence of cars. But the motive should not be to punish drivers and avoid the need to find savings.
We are reducing our property portfolio by 40 per cent. Using technology and innovation has delivered savings. Greater use of partnerships has also saved money while delivering ease and convenience for the public.
Rather than eroding that protection, it should be strengthened. There should be more power to challenge excessive spending.
I believe that empowering councils to play their full part as leaders of place will streamline resources, reduce bureaucracy, boost productivity, and support levelling up.
In Worcestershire, we have provided a surfaced active travel link from Kidderminster to join up with Worcester’s historic canal towpaths
Councils have retained more Business Rates as an incentive to boost enterprise. But it has been mooted that receipts grown by individual councils will be redistributed.
Another sensible public spending saving would be a complete switch to unitary authorities – which would also be less confusing for voters.