Council budgets

This week the council executive of eight Lib Dem and two Tory executive councillors finalised budget recommendations for the next three years.  Considerable debate has taken place and several months of hard work by council officers and coalition councillors to reach this point.

The council leader Cllr Nick Stanton has done an exemplary job in keeping all the coalition councillors informed and involved.

It’s worth reminding ourselves that 70% of council revenues are provided by central government. That the Labour government has decided to use 2004 population figures and not more recent figures. As the population is dramatically rising in London and South East, 2004 population fugures results in less money for Southwark but benefits Labour heartlands up the M1. Councils with signifcant deprivation (Southwark is the 20th most deprived council in UK) are getting real term cuts from the Labour government for the next three years as opposed to councils such as Rotherham (the 50th most deprived) which is seeing dramatic real terms increased.

Considerable savings will be made by centralising many council offices into a new office on Tooley street. God knows where we’d be if this wasn’t already in progress.

Social care is being consulted on to stop providing care for those with moderate needs. Community Warden services will have fewer wardens and manager. Meals on wheels where Southwark is the cheapest in London will see price increases. Livesey childrens museum will close. A review of all three historic town halls will take place. Some council funded events will see cuts or no more funding. A whole host of other cuts will be made.

No one likes or wants cuts. Considering the dreadful hand of cards dealt by the government I think the residents of Southwark have had the best possible result.

Battery recycling

Batteries contain lots of nasty exotic chemicals that really should’nt go to landfill or incinerators. Ideally we’d all use wind-up appliances such as radios, mains power or rechargeable batteries. But for some things only a battery is available. 

Southwark Council has just introduced battery recycling boxes in all libraries. For East Dulwich the nearest libraries are Dulwich Library on Lordship lane and Grove Vale Library on Grove Vale.

Up to now I used to put battery in my pocket and cycle them up and down the Walworth on the way to and from work. Everntually I’d remember and divert into the Manor Place recycling centre. Now I’ll just stroll along with the kids on a Saturday morning to Grove Vale Library.

Planning and Energy Bill

Currently councils are extremely limited in ensuring new developments meet the highest possible and practicable environmental standards.

A private members bill being promoted by Michael Fallon MP would allow councils, after  involving their communities, to set high energy efficiency standards for new developments and to require them to generate energy locally. This would dramatically save on CO2 emissions, create local jobs.

IF you want such a bill to happen then please contact our Dulwich & West Norwood MP Tessa Jowell and ask her to vote for it on 25 January – Rt. Hon. Tessa Jowell MP, House of Commons, Westminster, SW1A 0AA  

Telephone number – 020 7219 3409, Fax number – 020 7219 2702, E-mail address – jowellt@parliament.uk

Fortnightly rubbish collections – thwarted so far

Southwark Council has no plans for fortnightly rubbish collections. It is in the process of signing a PFI contract with Veolia for all its rubbish collection and processing services that states weekly rubbish collections.

But I’ve read that councils that have introduced fortnightly rubbish collections have a step increase in recycling. I’ve lots of reservations about how such a fortnightly service would feel. So as an experiment our house has been trying to only put out our rubbish bin every fortnight. For the last two weeks we’ve failed dismally. The rubbish collections guys are so thorough that even when we’ve not put out our rubbish bin out they’ve fetched it from down the side of the house – thwarting our experiment so far.

Peak Coal

This week I was horrified to read about an Energy Watch report suggesting Peak Coal is only 25 years away. I’d previously heard about Peak Oil from an East Dulwich resident, which is the point at which from then on ever decreasing amounts of oil will be available and prices will sky rocket. But along with everyone else I’d imagined that some of that problem would be ameliorated by substituting with coal. But to read that Peak Coal is potentially only 25 years away is truely frightening.

If this prediction is correct we are set up for sky rocketing energy prices. Clearly we’re not ready to continue our civilisations globally, nationally, regionally or locally with energy prices ten or more times the current prices. Or with energy becoming unreliable and intermitent.

I had been thinking about more insulation and installing renewable energy for my house. I’m going to accelerate these thoughts into plans.

What are you going to do?

Digital TV Tax – part II

Some time ago I highlighted my annoyance at the Labour Governments Digital TV tax – all the TV’s, video machines, etc have to be replaced at a huge cost to individuals so that the government can sell TV analogue UHF channels. That this will disproportionately affect the poor.

The UK auctions start this year.

We’re now getting an idea of what those UHF channels will be used for – new technology mobile phones and wireless broadband gadgets. Digital TV signals are weak low powered signals but mobile gadgets high powered. Without extraordinary care the mobile high powered gadgets will drown out digital TV signals. Now I watch more TV than is good for me but I hadn’t thought the government was planning a TV starvation diet for me.

The US National Association of Broadcasters has accused Microsft and Google who plan to bid for US channels of “playing Russian roulette” with digital TV quality. The European Broadcasters Union testing has shown that some of the types of wireless gadgets planned destroy digital TV pictures and sounds. 

Considering the fiasco the Labour Government has made of other high tech projects expect to have no TV in East Dulwich for 2012. Ironically one of the few TV services that probably will be o.k. will be TV on mobile phones. But do we want a whole new raft of mobile oerator masts.

Perhaps we all need to be prepared to fill our evening and make sure you have a Southwark Library card!

Reflection on losing

Apparently the smoking ban introduced in 2002 to Australian gambling venues has reduced gambling by 14% following its introduction. Hopefully we’ll see a similar affect in East Dulwich as a result of this years smoking ban.

Twenty years ago I spent a glorious six months training to be a betting shop manager in the west end and soho. I’d never been sworn at before then! Those six months were a real rights of passage for me. But the one thing I really vividly recall is how sad I felt seeing people blow a wage packet. As a husband and parent it makes me shiver at the potential implications of that. Hence my delight at the propsect of the smoking ban potentially reducing gambling.

Planning applications go on-line

This Thursday 10 January new Planning Application will go on-line. During the following six months the existing planning applications since 2003 will be data captured and added to the on-line system.

Considering that currently people who want to view a planning application have to make a special trip to the Planning Department offices at Chiltern House, Portland Street, SE17 this new on-line capability will be a real benefit. It will enable anyone to view a scheme remotely from the Planning Department from the comfort of their office, own home or local library.

I suspect many people will feel relieved to see plans for proposals and that fears they have are often not necessary. For many others, especially campaigning groups, it will give them a capability to get involved that practically they didn’t have before without taking time away from work, family or studies. Before becoming a councillor I spent many a lunch time dashing to Chiltern House to view a scheme and dash back to the office having viewed a planning application. Not something I could do more than very occassionally.

Well done to the Planning Department and the various IT suppliers for making this possible. Good luck for Thursday. Hope it all works!

Rubbish Bin collection strike

To reach government future targets for recycling a huge £30,000,000+  investment is required in new state of the art facilities on the Old Kent Road. Apart from all our desires to minimise the waste we individually and Southwark collectively generates the government charges Southwark £12 per tonne Landfill Tax. Additionally, if Southwark doesn’t meet ever tougher recycling targets the Government will fine Southwark a lot of money. The Landfill taxes and fines are getting bigger.

So Southwark has to make a huge investment in waste services.

‘helpfully’ the Labour Government has decreed that such huge investments should occur via Private Partnerships. No Liberal Democrat likes these partnerships, better ways to do this exist, but the government has made it abundantly clear that this is the ‘only show in town’.

This month the contract with Veolia to make this huge investment and run waste services with ever tougher recycling targets is due to be signed. Now the Unison union representing all of the employees involved are considering strike action. The same Unison that gave the Labour Party £464,434.00 during July-September 2007 alone.

I think Unison needs to makes it mind up. Either it supports the Labour Party and the near imposition of Private Partnerships and all that entails or it doesn’t.

For the individual Unison members in Southwark. You don’t have to pay the political levy. You can opt out if you think this Labour government policy affecting you is crass. 

Digital tax

We’ve all grown very used to how to make a television work. Get a licence, aerial and TV. Simple. The government has decided to really complicate this. The ‘old’ system uses analogue signals which are very forgiving when things not tuned correctly or aerial not pointing correctly and yet will still work. 2012 the analogue transmitters will be closed down. This is so the government can sell the radio spectrum. They don’t know what this radio spectrum will be sold for yet, but after making £21billion from selling radio spectrum for 3G phones they’re sure they want another sale. So everyone and anyone who uses a TV will have to buy a set top box or new digital TV and potentially a new aerial, etc.

Southwark Council controls 55,000 properties. All these properties need to have solutions to this government created problem before 2012. Estimates of what this cost vary but it will cost several tens of millions of pounds.

Is this something you think the country needs to be worrying about now?

Sadly the 3G phone people have been licking the wounds from that 3G auction. No one in business will pay such ridiculous prices again. So the premise of closing the analogue transmitters seems false.

This is effectively a regressive digital tax – i.e. the poorest pay a higher proportion of income buying set top boxes/digital Televisions compared to the richest to still have access to TV. We will all pay for every council in the country being partly distracted from delivering crucial services while they sort this unnecessary pickle out.