City of York’s Conservative Group will submit two amendments to Budget Council on 12th February; focused on cutting bureaucracy and instead delivering on the frontline for residents. The key parts are:
1. Removing the additional Labour charge (support by the Lib Dems) for residents’ first green bins
2. Cutting the cost of politics with the removal of ‘Political Assistants’, cutting ‘Special Responsibility Allowances’ (one Labour councillor received over £10,000 just to chair a committee that has not even met since October) and a reduction of two Executive Members
3. A leaner more efficient management structure with £200,000 of savings, a reduced council communication budget and the removal of a planned new newspaper – which labour wanted to bring in just for the year before the election!
4. Boosting the highways budget and repairing more potholes
5. A special fund for parking solutions – likely to be discounts at otherwise quiet times, to boost business
6. Lowering the rate of Council Tax increase (albeit not as much as we would like!)
Conservative Group Leader Cllr Chris Steward said
The focus of our amendment is going back to no additional charge for residents’ first green bin. Taking away waste is the most basic of council services which residents should get for their council tax, rather than have to pay an additional charge. We are also reshaping management to save significant sums.
We are limiting the rate of Council Tax increase. Labour were elected booth locally and nationally on promises of freezing Council Tax but instead they have betrayed people and each year hiked tax by the maximum legally allowed without a referendum. With us not being in power, meaning decisions have been taken we would not have taken, we are limited in the extent we can limit the tax rise but this amendment shows our intent; Council Tax is one of the most regressive taxes of all and we would rather money be in residents’ pockets.
Cllr Mike Nicholls, councillor for Bishopthorpe said
Our second amendment is a stark and simple choice – whether people want to pay for political talking or frontline services. If passed out amendment will remove the so called Political Assistants employed by the Labour and Liberal Democrat Groups and also cut the ruling Labour Executive by two members, this money will be used to buy a new JCB Pothole Pro* vehicle with the latest ‘in one’ pothole repair technology and provide £100,000 of funding for its use. Nothing could be clearer about our focus on the frontline and addressing the appalling roads, whilst cutting the cost of politics.
*Example of the type of vehicle likely to be bought, this would be subject to appropriate procurement consideration.
