NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE COUNCIL LEADER BROUGHT TO TASK OVER THE ALLOCATION OF PUBLIC MONEY.

Well, it’s been a long time coming but at long last the Conservative Leader of North Lincolnshire Council has been forced into an embarrassing and humiliating climbdown regarding the allocation of public monies for celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

North Lincolnshire Council has a sum of £25,000 to share out between Town & Parish Councils, Voluntary Community Groups, Village Hall Committees and Jubilee Groups who wish to celebrate the occasion.

A number of people were alarmed when a statement went out saying that any applications should be sent direct to the Leader of the Council for decision making, clearly an abuse of her position and obviously by passing any accountability checks.

Thankfully this has been overturned and such applications are now to go through the Chief Executive’s department, where a criteria has been set up to distribute the funds, which in turn should receive Cabinet Member approval as opposed to being determined simply on the Leader’s whim.

It’s good to see that we haven’t quite hit the dictatorship position yet here at North Lincolnshire Council.

NORTH LINCS TORIES SPEND £1.286 MILLION ON CONSULTANTS IN FIRST YEAR OF OFFICE

So the truth is out, after scraping the barrel with their gutter politics at the last local elections in North Lincolnshire and constant accusations against Labour of using consultants, we now have the figures on consultancy useage of our holier than thou Tories.

In their first year of office our local Tories have thrown £1.286 million of council taxpayers money on the use of consultants.

It just domonstrates that they’ll say anything to get elected but once in position they’ll simply do as they please.

Pet projects include ‘Punctuality Surveys’ (£455.11), ‘The Angel (Brigg)’ (£2,047.50), ‘Procurement Advice’ (£7,734.68), ‘Silica Park Childrens Home’ (£1,285.76) etc, etc, etc.

Perhaps people in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.

PROPOSALS FOR DARBY GLASS SITE.

I have been questioned by some residents regarding the future use of the Darby Glass site on the South Park Industrial Estate, Bottesford.

I can confirm that a planning application has been submitted for the demolition of existing buildings on the site. It also gives notification of a further intent to placing residential properties on the land but to my knowledge there are no specific details at this stage.

Having represented Bottesford for a number of years now I am only too aware of the problems that materialise when residential and industrial estates are sited so close together, in this case side by side.

While I don’t object in principle I suppose the balance has to be the need to build what could be potentially affordable homes on a brown field site against the fairness of housing people and families ever closer to heavy industry.

I would be interested to hear the views of local residents.

HOW NORTH LINCS TORIES HAVE SQUANDERED YOUR HARD EARNED CASH !

The Labour Group has managed to unearth some of the unnecessary spend carried out, in just less than a year of election, by our local Conservative Council at North Lincolnshire.

£9,362 has been spent on decorating the main reception area to Pittwood House.

£8,705 removing the Labour Group from their existing offices to a set of new offices within the same building.

£5,987 on ‘refurbishing’ the Conservative Group office (extremely strange as the present offices were taylor made to their choosing only three years ago).

£90,544 on relocating and setting up the new Registry Office at Pittwood House, (at long last we got a degree of honesty on this one as we were informed that this was not the final account).

It has been admitted that Interior Designers have been employed by the Conservatives in choosing ‘colour schemes’ and to give ‘general design advice’. This was supposedly at no cost, anyone buy this ? No me neither !

On one final note, what a shame that this information was not forthcoming to democratically elected Labour Councillors and that the Labour Group had to resort to submitting a Freedom of Information request to obtain this information.

NORTH LINCS COUNCIL TO BUILD CHILDRENS HOME ON SILICA COUNTRY PARK

The absurdity of our Tory controlled North Lincolnshire Council knows no bounds as they now want to build a Childrens Home on the popular Silica Country Park in Scunthorpe.

After announcing that they are to close two existing homes they now wish to build on this much loved nature reserve.

The site presently houses over 150 different trees and shrubs, 25 wild birds, frogs and tadpoles as well as other natural features.

Surely this site is a greenfield ste if ever there was one and the existing wildlife and nature protected.

OPENNESS & TRANSPARENCY ASSIGNED TO THE GARBAGE BIN ONCE AGAIN.

We have, today (30th March 2012) been circulated with an ‘urgent’ decision from the Highways and Neighbourhoods Cabinet Member on the issue of car parking charges to be implemented on 23rd April 2012.

This, of course, means that once again this by-passes all the democratic processes of Scrutiny surrounding its validity and everything else.

How strange then that this decision was handed to the Scunthorpe Telegraph in good time for it to be carried and published in its entirety complete with supporting statements from the Council Leader, Councillor Liz Redfern on 15th March 2012.

In short a council decision is handed to the media prior to 15th March 2012, to be then taken as ‘urgent’ (simply to avoid all scrutiny) on 30th March 2012 that doesn’t actually have to be implemented until 23rd April 2012.

Obviously openness and transparency are in our local Tories’ eyes simply words to be used to con the public.

Just how much longer will they continue to fall for it ?

Yet another disgrace !

POPLAR DRIVE & FIELDSIDE CHILDRENS HOMES AXED BY TORIES – OFFICIAL

Further to my blog of March 13th 2012 our North Lincolnshire Tories have now officially axed the two Childrens Homes at Poplar Drive, Brigg and Fieldside, Epworth.

Apologies to readers of my blog that I can’t expand on the details around this decision but the Tories in their self styled ‘open and transparent’ fashion have firstly made this an ‘exempt’ decision and secondly an ‘urgent’ decision meaning that it can not be called in and questioned by Scrutiny.

What’s to hide ?

and

So much for democracy !

CONTRIBUTIONS BY TRADE UNIONS AND MP BANNED BY TORIES AT NORTH LINCS WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY.

This has to be one of the most disgusting and distasteful moves yet from our right wing extremists under the guise of Conservatives at North Lincolnshire Council.

For the first time ever the Trade Unions and the Labour MP for Scunthorpe are to be banned from verbally giving their contributions at the Workers Memorial Day to those workers who have unfortunately lost their lives during the course of their normal duties of work.

I can only describe this latest move as the lowest of the low.

BOTTESFORD ANNUAL TOWN MEETING REPORT 2012

Last night was the annual Town Meeting of Bottesford Town Council which attracted no less than five of the town’s residents, (although somewhat disappointing, it was at least an increase on 2011 which had just one resident in attendance).

Fifteen Town Councillors Jean Bromby, Craig Busby, Mel Chatwin, Sue Clarke, John Collinson, Paul Crompton, Len Foster, Bill Johnson, Pete Sargeant, Steve Swift, Freda Urry, Ron Urry, Dave Whiteley, Alan Wilkinson and Glyn Williams were present.

The Town Mayor Councillor Freda Urry, Chair of Parks – Councillor Glyn Williams and Chair of Development – Councillor Ron Urry all dutifully submitted verbal reports focusing on the positives within their areas of resonsibility.

Sargeant James Main (Scunthorpe South) also had a positive report to give regarding the overall reduction in crime in the Bottesford area over the past year.

Only one question, around Planning, was put forward by the members of the public present.

IS CAMERON THAT INNOCENT IN THE ‘CASH FOR ACCESS’ FIASCO?

The revelations that Conservative Party Treasurer, Peter Cruddas, was offering access to the Prime Minister and Chancellor for a fee up to the tune of £250,000 for the Tories coffers raises many questions.

David Cameron stated “this is not the way we raise money in the Conservative Party” in an attempt to minimise the embarrassment, well obviously it was, it’s just that you got found out.

Having arranged these exclusive meetings, why didn’t Cameron and his Chancellor question their purpose ?

The Prime Minister claims to have set up a ‘party inquiry’ but surely an independent investigation is what is required so that the Prime Minister and the Chancellor are also questioned regarding their role in this sinister operation.