Budget Meeting - Newquay

Last night I attended a Budget Consultation in Newquay - one of a series of 23. There were 7 Cornwall Councillors (including the Leader), a good attendance from Newquay Town Council, three Council officers (including the Corporate Director for Environment) and about 6 valiant members of the public.

There were a number of empty seats

There were no suggestions as to which Council services might be cut - which was the fundamental question. But there was a suggestion that the number of councillors be cut.

Cllr Folkes said that members' allowances were a mere 0.4 per cent of the Budget. That is still over £2 million - so equal to more than half the total budget for leisure centres.

Of course, as someone remarked, our true cost is much higher when you consider all the meetings we have etc.. Personally, I think that it would be a good idea to start measuring those costs. Democracy is very important but cost is an issue, and we cannot control what we don’t measure.

Several expressed concern about staff (especially excess layers of management) and staff pensions. Cllr Folkes said that he was looking at it but not for this budget. Indeed, he suggested that, as the pension scheme was so expensive, one option would be to close it to new members. So cuts to services now but looking at staff later. That this is what the Secretary of State Eric Pickles refers to as a 'lazy choice'.

There was a feeling of lack of trust in the Council. Had it really done all it could to save money by efficiencies? I, for one, think that the Council could do better and that is where to start. A member of Newquay Town Council referred to two events held in Newquay this year which required a sign off from Cornwall Council. He said that 63 officers of the Council had to be invited to a meeting on these events.

Council Tax Support Scheme

Some concern was expressed that I mentioned a member of the public by name at the last Full Council meeting in the context of a question to Alex Folkes on his change of tune on the Council Tax Support Scheme.

Ms Kent got in touch with me to thank me for raising her issue and to confirm that she had indeed given her name on the Radio and did not wish to be anonymous.

I am glad that my proposal to allocate £1 million to assist residents adversely affected by the changes to the Scheme was eventually accepted by Full Council. However, I think events have borne out that the Council was right in January not to absorb the whole cost of this reduction in central government funding - although many in the current Cabinet, including Cllr Folkes, thought that it should.

More flip flopping from Alex Folkes.

The Council slashes services but protects staff

In May the Liberal Democrats promised to cut parking charges across Cornwall. They also promised to cut waste and inefficiency, not the services local people rely on.

Unfortunately the Lib-Dems have a track record of breaking election promises. Even cast-iron written commitments - as in the case of tuition fees.

Prior to last May it was well known that there would be significant further government budget reductions.

Conservative pressure at County Hall kept the last administration under budget for the last 4 years. The new Liberal Democrat Finance Portfolio Holder (Cllr Folkes) immediately spent the budget surplus from last year and is now predicting being over budget this year- without any further government cuts.

Now in a position to make a difference, Cllr Folkes is prepared to slash any service to save money. But he has ruled out looking at staff pay in this year's budget.

He thinks that it is easier to cut services and raise council tax than consider reducing the council's pay bill of over £200,000,000.

The last administration saved £170 million, but we would be the first to say that there was more to do.

Cllr Folkes' delay will make it more difficult to protect services to the vulnerable, leisure centres and libraries, buses and roads.

In the last Council a series of public consultation events on the budget were led, very capably, by Councillor John Keeling, Chairman of Scrutiny, not the Cabinet member responsible for the Budget. So there was more listening to the public and less lecturing. As Conservatives, we supported this approach.

Cllr Folkes complains that my group turned down an invite to a private meeting with him on the Budget. Quite frankly, there are far too many meetings behind closed doors at County Hall under the new administration.

Right of Way Re-opened

I would like to thank local residents, especially George Budge, for all the effort they put in to help get the shortcut past Carvedras Yard re-opened. This has been used for generations as a shortcut, for example, to the railway station and Bosvigo School.

I know that the legal processes seem to have taken forever but, just as the Council’s formal notice to remove the obstruction was about to expire last Friday, a through route was reopened by the landowner.

The formal statements which we took from local residents convinced the Council that they could and should take action. They also persuaded the landowner to comply with (at the eleventh hour) the Council’s demand to reopen the route.

However, there is more to do. Part of the area has been cordoned off by the landowner by a monstrous fence. I will now try to get the status of this right of way formalised to minimise the risk of it being obstructed in the future and try to get the fence removed.

My Letter of 28th January to Cornwall Council Leader Jim Currie

Jim,

There has been much debate about whether use of "voice risk analysis'
is ethical and on whether it works.

However, the most important question is why was it being done secretly.

If it's OK ethically why the secrecy?

If it doesn't work if the interviewee knows it is being used then it
is no use when people find out. So not much of a shelf life?

It was always going to come out. What I hope I have done is to make
it public before the interviews took place.

I have put a motion to Council to try to restore public trust that
the Council will not use it in future.

Fiona

My Resignation letter from the Cabinet

Jim,

As you know, it came to my attention that the contract let to Capita
(before I took up my portfolio duties) to survey claimants of the
single person's council tax relief will include the use of "Voice
Risk Analysis" (VRA) techniques when making phone calls to claimants.

These techniques are sometimes called "lie detector" tests.

It is clearly right that Cornwall Council takes a strong line against
people who deliberately mis-claim tax benefits but in this case I am
more concerned about the impact on the vast majority of honest claimants.

In passing, although this does not deal with my fundamental ethical
objection, I note that the techniques used by Capita were trialled by
the Department of Work and Pensions in 24 local authorities on the
processing of Housing Benefit between August 2008 and December 2010.

Their report issued in September 2010 said: "From our findings it is
not possible to demonstrate that VRA works effectively and
consistently in the benefits environment. The evidence is not
compelling enough to recommend the use of VRA within DWP."

I have discussed this matter with the Monitoring Officer. He has
advised me that, as this is an operational matter in relation to a
contract that the Council has already entered into, he strongly
advises me that I should not require that this software is not
used. If, contrary to his advice, I maintain my stance that we must
not use this software then officers will comply provided you also agree.

You have made it clear to me that you will not agree. Indeed, you
have said that I will be 'sacked' if I inform members that this
software will be used.

That will not be necessary. Please accept my resignation with
immediate effect.

May I say that I have no reason whatsoever to believe that you were
aware of this aspect of the contract before I drew it to your
attention. I also appreciate that you are in a difficult position in
view of the Monitoring Officer's advice. But, I do not believe that
his advice is correct and I cannot accept it on ethical grounds. I
also do not believe that it will help the Council to pursue fraud
(which we must surely do) if the public think we are using this
software. Finally, I fear that it will be extremely damaging to our
reputation.

Therefore, I am launching a petition to require any use of this type
of technology to be approved by Full Council.

Fiona

Conservatives continue to push for NO council tax rise for third year

Conservatives on Cornwall Council reiterated
their aim, at a meeting on Friday, that it is a
priority to push for a zero change in the
Cornwall Council part of the Council tax for a third consecutive year.

Conservative Group Leader Fiona Ferguson
explained, "It is becoming more and more
difficult to achieve no increase in Council tax
but we also know how difficult the financial
situation is for many people in Cornwall and we
will continue to try to reach this goal.

"I have taken over the Finance Portfolio from the
new leader, Cllr Currie. I take my hat off to him
for the work achieved to date in saving £170m
from the Council Budget. I know he is sceptical
that a zero rise can be achieved but I am
determined to work towards this goal."

The meeting also pressed for the increase of an
emergency fund to help those who find themselves
in difficulty as government changes to the
welfare system take place. They also promised to
feed back any experiences from Cornwall so that
the government is fully aware of issues faced in Cornwall.

The budget proposals will face a week of scrutiny
by Cornwall council members starting on the 21st
January leading to an extraordinary meeting of
the full council on 26th February to set the
council tax figures for the next year.

Contact: Fiona Ferguson 07731 548139