Mandelson Returns! - political comment!

Spin warning!

So in desperation, Gordon Brown brings back Mandelson and Campbell to try and restore his ailing fortunes. Now we hear he is considering bringing back David Blunkett.  What a trio!  Remember all those headlines and resignations? After Mandelson resigned twice from the cabinet, he was hived off to a lucrative post in Europe, and now he has been brought back in to the Labour fold.  Do we really want to be governed by these political rejects? Another fine example of questionable judgement by this Prime Minister!  Is he really fit to run this country?  If they weren't good enough then, they are certainly not good enough now!  Roll on the general election and remember these things when polling day finally comes around!

GORDON'S GAFF - FREE EVERYTHING!

Spin warning!

Once again we have Gordon Brown trying to court popularity by giving "FREE" computers, school meals, nursery places etc. etc.  

Do you really believe that it is FREE? If you do, think about concessionary bus fares which caused nearly 5% on the council tax for Adur District area this year and the possibility of the same sort of problem with the so called "FREE SWIMMING" (see below). As usual, the devil will be in the small print, and it is inevitable that we will all have to bite the bullet with more taxes and increased council tax as a result.

The problem this will give all councils is what to leave off in the way of services if we have to find more money. Council tax is capped by this government at 5%, and for every £50,000 extra Adur District Council has to find adds 1% to council tax. With all the other financial pressures it is therefore inevitable that we will have to cut services if we end up with further financial burdens as a result of these government decisions, designed to boost Gordon Brown and the Labour Party's failing profile.

Legal Services Commission & Citizen's Advice Bureaux

The Legal Services Commission provide what most people will remember as "Legal Aid" to people who have legal problems but are on limited income. Currently, such services are delivered through the Citizens Advice Bureax in four of the seven West Sussex District or Town Council areas.  Each of the four Bureax has a quality mark to enable them to provide this essential service to the community.

However, recently, there has been a move to broaden out the service and go out to tender for interested organisations to bid for a contract for specialist and generalist advice services. While the CAB is able to apply, it is by no means certain that they would be the preferred applicant, and if the contract is awarded to another organisation, this will undoubtedly have a detrimental impact on CAB services across West Sussex.

Once again, this is being driven by government policy, and a tendering process will be undertaken.  In an attempt to prepare for this, CABs across West Sussex have formed a consortium with which to make a bid for the integrated services.  As usual, this is not new money, and it is accompanied by the usual "spin" about benefits of an more integrated service. What is anticipated is that all local councils and the West Sussex County Council will centralise the grants they currently give for CAB services under the new proposals. Were that to be the case, the reality is that most, if not all all CABs, would not be able to continue following the loss of this funding.

Currently your Councillors are considering how best to deal with this issue, while at the same time maintaining support for the local CABs who are so important to the community. Leader of Adur Council Neil Parkin, and Councillor David Simmons (Cokeham) who is Cabinet Member for this issue, as due to go to a West Sussex meeting of all councils to settle the issue.

We would welcome views from you, the community on this matter, which can be sent to us via email to david.simmons@adur.gov.uk or by telephone to 01273 - 464018.

Councillor David Simmons, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Wellbeing.

  Free Swimming?

Free swimming for over 60's and under 16's!

So says the government!  We believe however, that there are some serious risks to these proposals, and that is why Adur District Councillors are asking you, the community, whether such a facility should be made available at Wadars in Shoreham.  So what are the facts?

• The sum of money set aside for Adur by the government is £23,370 each year for two years to fund over 60's swimming, and no commitment thereafter. Any future funding will then be part of the next government spending review and may result in no further funding;

• Councils are being asked to commit to swimming for the under 16's without any commitment by government to provide adequate funding either now or in the future so this is an unknown quantity when budgeting for any community facility;

• Increased numbers of people using the facility would mean an increase in costs for pool maintenance;

• More swimmers might also mean more staff for water safety adding to the staffing bill;

• Increased usage could deter other, paying customers if Wadars becomes too busy thereby reducing income.

Already Impulse Leisure, who run the Wadars facility alongside the Lancing and Southwick Leisure Centres are having to deal with huge increases in utilities expenses in order to run them, and this in itself will bring added pressure to existing budgets, and exacerbate the situation still further if the new proposals are adopted.

It is largely a matter for the community to indicate to their elected Councillors whether they would wish us to support the proposals, and whether they would then be prepared to accept any increase in council tax which might arise as a result.

There may be some similarities with the so called free bus pass scheme. I would like to remind you that of the 4.9% rise in Council Tax in Adur last year, 4% of that was to fund the bus pass scheme (see below). Adur alone had to find a further £250,000 to support it, money not provided by central government.

Please let your councillors know your views about this, as we have to make a decision in principal by the end of September 2008.

Councillor David Simmons     September 2008

  Council Tax 2008-2009 set February 18th 2008 

Council Tax is an emotive subject, and one which annually challenges the council to balance its books without adding enormously to the existing tax level while retaining and improving services.

This year, when considering the rise of just under 5% approved at full Council on 18th February 2008, it is important to realise that with the poor settlement from government for next year, Councillors started with a possible increase of up to 17% in mind, and were only able to bring it down due to the savings that have been made in operating systems and reorganisation during the past year.

In fact, the actual rise in Adur Council Tax was only 0.2%, which was a massive achievement for the Councillors on the committee supported by officers, and would have been the lowest rise for years, but for one factor.

That factor, causing over 4% of additional Council Tax increase, is the concessionary bus pass scheme, set to expand in April this year.  Government has refused to increase its subsidy for that scheme despite making it mandatory, meaning that the only way it can be funded is to add it to Council Tax.

Your Council can only do so much when government policy is so damaging to local people and the local economy.

Merging Adur and Worthing Services!

Of late a lot of misinformation that has been published, mostly to make political capital, about the proposals to merge Adur and Worthing services and some officer structures. When considering the proposed changes, it is essential that people understand that the decisions have not been taken lightly, but only after considerable debate as well as a comprehensive strategic assessment.

So what are the main drivers for change? Initially, this government has imposed a requirement for a further 10% reduction in expenditure on all Councils over the next three years. This equates to over 3% year on year, and in addition, council tax rises are likely to be capped at 3% per annum. Adur, as one of the smallest local authorities nationally, has already cut waste to the bone, and the only way such reduction can be achieved without cutting front line services, is to explore new and innovative ways of saving money. The success of merging waste disposal services across Adur and Worthing, being unique nationally as an approach, has indicated that similar successes might be achievable in other areas of service delivery and a decision has been made to explore combining services not only with Worthing, but also with other councils in West Sussex.

It is probably correct to say, at least in the short term, that in Adur council tax reductions are unlikely. But it is also true that rises will be kept to a lower level as a consequence if the merger of services goes ahead. The fact that changes are required at all is a direct consequence of government policy and the under-funding of councils in the South East.

As far as adoption of the cabinet system for Adur in place of the existing committee system is concerned, there are always pros and cons with any system. What most correspondents fail to mention, is that there are plans in this government to insist on every council moving to the cabinet system, so in the short term there is likely to be little choice in the matter. There are however a number of different models of the cabinet system in use, and your council will seek to ensure that the right model is adopted to ensure that the involvement of all members in a democratic decision making process is maintained. Adur Councillors remain dedicated and committed to getting the best deal for all people in our area despite national pressures, targets and government policies.