Between 2011 and 2016 councils in England will have been subjected to cuts of up to 40% which according to the Local Government Association have left many councils facing ‘financial breakdown’. The cuts have been accompanied by relentless attacks on local authorities by local government minister Eric Pickles MP – accusing council’s of being ‘incompetent rotten boroughs’, employing workers in ‘non jobs’, ‘stuffing billions into reserves’, ‘anti car dogma’ etc. Yesterday the Commons Communities and Local Government committee ran an #AskPickles session in which questions from the public were put to the hard right Tory MP for leafy Brentwood and Ongar. Asked why he constantly bashes local government Pickles answered that he does it because he ‘loves local government’. A line of justification deployed by perpetrators of domestic violence the whole world over:
http://www.parliamentlive.tv/Main/Player.aspx?meetingId=14698
A depressing read in today’s Guardian highlights the true extent of the loss of local council services in England, as local government wrestles with the cuts imposed by the bombastic, hard right ideologue, Eric Pickles MP. There can be no justification for the scale of cuts to local council budgets, other than to agree a more measured budget settlement, for local councils, would simply get in the way of Pickles’ politicking for the Home Office job. As part of this man’s ego local municipal services are sacrificed on the altar of his ambitions. Whilst you would expect labour councils to call for his head it is surely a matter of time before Tory councillors wake up and smell the coffee. Perhaps that wake-up call with be on the 3rd May 2013?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2013/mar/25/council-cuts-local-government-knees
