'Council should save £1/3 million, by cutting management fat and slashing spending on spin, and improve services instead' say Lib Dems

At the meeting of the Guildford Borough Council to decide the rate of council tax for next year, Liberal Democrat councillors proposed radical cuts in the Council's top management team together with a cut in council spin. The saving of over £1/3 million should then be used to fund improved services, whilst keeping the increase in council tax at the Conservative's figure of 2.46%.

Liberal Democrat Group Leader Cllr Fiona White proposed to save £1/4 million by sharing the council's management team with another local authority, as has been successfully achieved in other parts of the country. Cllr White said "We currently have a full-time Chief Executive and three Directors responsible, we are told, for 'blue-skies thinking'. Well let's cut the management fat and share the cost of that 'blue skies thinking' with a neighbouring council. We could then spend the saving of £1/4 million on improving council services - council tax-payers want to see practical value for their money rather than endless corporate strategy statements."

Lib Dem Finance spokesperson Cllr Anne Meredith proposed that the Council's budget for public relations and marketing, currently totally £847,000, should be slashed by £100,000. Cllr Meredith said "It really is outrageous that the council is spending close on £1 million on spin and marketing while at the same time making petty cuts in services. I'm sure residents would prefer to continue funding the Taxi marshals which help keep the town centre safe rather than spending thousands of pounds on press releases."

The potential total savings of £350,000 should be used to reinstate the Conservative cuts in services and to fund new initiatives including youth facilities, cheaper charges for Guildford's children at Spectrum, and environmental projects to fight climate change. Under the Lib Dem proposal, the £100,000 saved on PR and marketing would be used to reinstate the Tory cuts, including:

• Reinstate funding for Town Centre Taxi Marshalls on Friday and Saturday nights at peak week-ends

• Reinstate funding for the ranger and sports ground manager posts, which were proposed for deletion in the list of Additional Savings on page 20 of Annex 2 of the report to the Executive

• Reinstate funding to Guildford Environmental Forum and the budget for the county show

The potential savings of £250,000 from sharing a management team could be spent on projects such as:

• Funding an additional debt adviser at CAB

• Introducing discounts in charges for the use of Spectrum facilities for children of 16 or under who live within in the Borough

• Providing a sum of money to provide activities and facilities for young people in the Borough, to be used on schemes developed in consultation with Guildford Youth Council

• Providing grants for environmental initiatives working in collaboration with Guildford Environmental Forum

Cllr Chris Ward (Lib Dem, Onslow) commented "The Council needs to provide better facilities for our young people - providing constructive activities for them is an investment in our future. Many families find Spectrum prohibitively expensive, and we should be helping and encouraging children to use Spectrum. Providing a discount for the borough's children would be a much better use of funds than paying high salaries to council executives for 'blue skies thinking'."

Cllr Pauline Searle (Lib Dem, Stoughton) said "Many residents have told me of their concern that the borough's parks and countryside are being neglected from lack of resources. By cutting down on council spin we could redirect funding to protect our green spaces."

Cllr Sarah Di Caprio (Lib Dem, Holy Trinity) commented "Given the serious challenges presented by climate change, it seems extraordinary that the Conservatives propose cheese-paring cuts to the good work of Guildford Environmental Forum. We should be supporting all the volunteer environmental groups in our borough, and looking to fund imaginative environmental projects."

The Lib Dem amendment was voted down by the ruling Conservative group.

Speaking after the meeting, Lib Dem Group Leader Cllr Fiona White said: "It is a shame that the Conservatives did not have the courage to follow a route which their colleagues in other authorities have taken. Not only could our proposal have achieved savings in next year's budget but it could have helped to keep council tax down in future years without cutting services to Guildford's residents".