SCARY PHOTO !

Returned from a mainland trip last night to find my photo on the front page of the County Press publicising their inside coverage of the education furore! They keep using the scary photo - right - from when I was speaking as Labour Agent at the GKN jobs rally in Church Litten in Feb 2003. Just behind me is our Tory MP, though he has been cropped out. I must get them to use a less fearsome photo.

Anyway I am back now after my Xmas break and will be fully in the swing from Tuesday 3rd.

HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone

NO INTEREST IN SCRUTINY ?

Well I went to the Scrutiny Committee last night for an hour. The County Press probably had the right idea - they didn't turn up ! Apart from me the 'public' consisted of one other councillor and one officer. The Committee really isn't setting the Island alight.

They spent the hour I was there looking at the Government's grant settlement for the next 2 years, which isn't really their role. However, despite a good settlement that would have reduced the planned budget savings by £1.7m, the Council will still have to save £9m to deliver an inflationary increase of 2.5% next year, due to some health recharges of £1.7m. It was reported that efficiency savings and changes in political priorities will secure the £9m of savings, but we won't know what they are until next month. There was also some report of 'consultation' on this process, which sounded like anything but.

I noticed from the minutes of the last meeting that they should have had a work programme before them at this meeting. There wasn't one, and no one asked why not. So I have no idea what they will be doing in the future. If indeed anything.

Finally in the time I was there there was no mention of last night's Cabinet decision to prevent them calling-in the education privatisation decision, which I would have thought was of some significance for a Scrutiny Committee !

All in all a very poor meeting. No opportunity for non-members of the committee to ask questions, but at least the Cabinet Secretaries weren't supervising this time !

SO IT IS DONE

So last night the Cabinet agreed to hand £200k to Mouchel Parkman & Outcomes UK (trading as Children First) to lead Children's Services for the next year without regard to due process. The consortium will be headed up by a former Director of Children's Services for Southampton Council. I need to check out their records in educational achievment....

There were a good number of primary school Heads there with many questions, all of which were batted away with an air of disdain. The Council Leader then tried to move to a vote on this privatisation without allowing questions from other councillors present. However, I protested quickly and was graciously allowed to make my numerous comments about the underhand and undemocratic way this has all been rushed through - all of which were dismissed. Deborah also made some excellent remarks about how other Tory Councils have gone about this sort of contracting, involving proper consultation and involvment. All of course to no avail.

After the meeting I secured the necessary number of signatures from those LibDem and Independent councillors present to force an extraordinary Full Council meeting in the first week of the new year to democratically debate this whole issue.

MERRY XMAS AND A PEACEFUL NEW YEAR

To all my readers - my very best wishes for Christmas and hopes for a peaceful new year.

Keep reading and start contributing !

LAST LEG BEFORE XMAS

Well its the Cabinet tomorrow for the education privatisation, which I will be at. Recorded a radio interview at weekend detailing why we oppose it. Of course it will still go through, so we should be busy in new year pursuing alternative opposition strategies.

Thursday is the so-called Scrutiny Committee, which of course isn't scutinising the education privatisation and indeed doesn't seem to scrutinise much at all. It now has the Liberal election agent co-opted onto it representing town & parish councils (?), which is a real reflection of how relevant it is. I will try to get to it for a while, though I have a work social event that clashes. Should I be sad or human ?

After that it is time for a break. I have no work for 12 days, which will allow me to re-charge my batteries for next year...............

May post during the break depending on how I feel.

PRESS RELEASE - LABOUR EXPRESSES DISGUST AT UNDERHAND PRIVATISATION

The Labour councillors at County Hall are expressing their disgust at the underhand and unconstitutional manner in which the proposed privatisation of the role of Director of Children’s Services is being handled.

Next week there will be a special Council Cabinet meeting - to which it is recommended by the Deputy Leader of the Council that a preferred private company be appointed to replace outgoing Director, David Pettitt - initially on a daily basis, but with a view to a longer-term contract – costing £200k per annum.

Labour Councillor’s Deborah Gardiner & Geoff Lumley said,

“The way this is being handled is disgusting. We were told at the November Council meeting that there was ‘no business’ to trouble a December Council meeting, so they had cancelled it. And yet we now have a major decision about the future direction of education and children’s services about to be bounced through a Cabinet on the same date. Clearly more a case of ‘none of your business’ rather than no business.

Our main concerns are:

1. This privatisation was not mentioned in the Tories manifesto and there has been no consultation whatsoever with opposition Councillors, schools, governors, parents or the general public;
2. The privatisation is being rushed through out of claimed necessity, purely due to the unseemly haste with which the Conservatives are getting rid of David Pettitt and Kim Johnson;
3. This was not publicised in the Cabinet’s ‘Forward Plan’ even though they have known about Mr Pettitt’s departure for at least four weeks;
4. It is constitutionally for the Full Council to appoint senior officers through a politically balanced appointment panel, but the Tories are bouncing this through their Cabinet;
5. Council standing orders for private contracts have been ignored and will only be waived retrospectively by next week’s Cabinet. Appropriate advertising has not been placed to secure the preferred contractor and it makes you wonder what connections there might be with whoever gets the contract;
6. The Tory-appointed Scrutiny Committee will be banned from blocking this decision for 6 weeks by the Cabinet, which is the very body making this disgusting decision;
7. £200k seems to be an inordinate amount of money compared to the joint salaries of those officers who are leaving. A huge sum of money in relation to the way this contract is being let.
   

We have sought clarification from the Council’s legal advisor, but have effectively been fobbed off.

If the Cabinet proceeds with this decision next Wednesday, then the Labour Group and (we are sure) councillors from other groups will do everything they can to ensure that this dictatorial and arrogant Tory Council is held to account."

OLD FRIEND, OLD COMRADE

Spent Monday evening at a meeting organised by my own local councillor regarding parking, disorder and traffic problems around where I live. Issues that are also relavant to Pan and other Newport wards.

Also at the meeting was my old friend and former Labour councillor for Newport North ward Tony Tiltman. First time we have been at a meeting together for nearly 3 years. Wish he was still on the Council ! At least the people of Newport North would have an effective councillor.......and somone who speaks common sense on behalf of ordinary people.

That's the problem with this Council. It excludes working people, other than public service workers like Deborah and I, through the way it works.

EDUCATION PRIVATISATION NEXT WEEK

The Council will make the decision to privatise education and children's services management at a special Cabinet meeting next Wednesday.

The whole process they have adopted stinks ! There has been no consultation, it is all hurried due to the rushed and unseemly departure of the existing Director, it is usurping the role of the Full Council for senior appointments, advertising for potential contractors was highly limited, the Cabinet will unilaterally waive Council rules for contracting, and it cannot be 'called in' for scrutiny beforehand by decreee of the Cabinet.

For Cabinet now read Politbureau ! Josef Stalin would be proud.

Fortunately there are other ways in which opposition members can challenge this disgraceful example of decision-making................

SELL OFF DEFERRED

Next week's education management privatisation has been deferred due to the death of the existing Director's wife. Will now happen soon after that.

Seems like the Council has got £2 million more than expected from government for next year, but they will still be cutting the budget by around £7 million. In particular for vulnerable adults. Shame on them ! Deborah and I will be briefed this week in preparation for our own budget submission.

Spent the last couple of days getting my third Newsletter since May out on Pan - which of course prompts people to phone me more often. Lots of casework to be getting on with next week.

Next week's Cabinet will hear a progress report on the mad integration with the Health trusts and will decide what sort of resident's parking permit they will introduce from April. Likely to be a 24 hour one. Unfortunately I will miss most of the meeting due to a Medina High governors meeting.

Tried to have a meeting with the Cabinet member for Care, Health & Housing over my increasing concerns about the local Supporting People (in the community) provision, but she was too busy interviewing. Probably for the the private sector education management company. We can see what the Tories priorities are from that.

First meeting of the new Pan Partnership board last week - with the seven newly elected local residents. Much better meeting than we have had for some time. My predecessor as councillor, Tony Coburn, having been elected as one of the resident board members was elected as Chair of the board. Good news.

EDUCATION SOLD !

Next week the Tory Cabinet will put a private company in charge of Island education, without any consultation with parents or governors. The issue has been sneaked onto the agenda - still no details. Our children's futures should not be subject to profiteering.

Meanwhile, the Director of Children's Services (which covers education) had tragedy to add to the disgraceful treatment he is in receipt of from this Tory Council (see my post of 24.11.05), with the sudden death of his wife. My condolences to him.

Who would work for this lot ? Probably not many by the time they have finished......

GOVERNMENT RUNNING TO AID OF TORY COUNCIL

The Chancellor's Pre-Budget statement today seems like good news overall for local government. Over £300m extra next year and £500m the year after to help keep Council Tax down to inflation level Council tax increases. Will hopefully take some of the pressure and worry off the employees and service users of our Tory council with its service and jobs slashing agenda. Obviously I need to see what it means for the IW Council, with Deborah and I being briefed in the next couple of weeks.

One thing is certain - there will be a Labour budget proposal for the Council next year. Clearly it will be lost, but it will allow a public debate about what the Tories are up to.

GARDEN WAY

For anyone reading this from Garden Way: I have been assured by Council's Environmental Health officers that the risk from any asbestos within the hardcore used when the Garden Way houses were built in the early 70s is very low. It would have constituted no more than 1% of the waste material that was used as hardcore. The Council have publicised the allegation that the asbestos is possibly under your houses and gardens in the interests of openness, which I am pleased about. It will be investigated at some time in the future, along with all the other similar contaminated sites on the Island - over a thousand I understand. Such incidents were not uncommon for house-building at that time.