13 March - A fantastic Budget says the Bishop
A whole 100 minutes into the Council meeting and the real business of the
night is about to begin. The debate on Bexley’s 2024/25 Budget. I listened live but
that was a week ago and I’ve forgotten what was said, but if I guessed that the Tories claimed to be doing well and Making
Bexley Even Better while dismissing fees and charges going up by twice the rate
of inflation as neither here nor there, interspersed by a few home truths from
Labour, I doubt there would be too many inaccuracies.
Let’s see if I am right.
Labour Councillor Nicola Taylor (Erith) beat every Tory to the draw and fired
straight from the hip, “That budget isn’t great is it?” And listed some things
with which few would disagree; increasing demand for Adult’s Services, an aging population,
care needs becoming more complex, funding cut for hospital discharges and a
care workforce on a minimum wage struggling with staff shortages and reduced support from Government.
The result is “an overspend in Social Care a large part of it for residential
nursing provision. Should we be paying it to private companies that exist to
profit from residents’ needs? Providers who demand more and
take a bigger slice
from local Authority funding and who are beginning to hand back their
contracts. But you say outsourcing works” and respond by downgrading services
“and asking residents to pay more for it. It is clear who is to blame, your Government
which displays a disturbing lack of urgency”.
“Thanks to your Government, Bexley residents suffer” - a comment aimed at care
services but which could apply to literally everything.
Conservative Councillor Janice Ward-Wilson (Crook Log)
said it was an ambitious and forward looking budget and its aspirations were
good. Care demands continue to increase but nevertheless Bexley is ranked sixth
best in London for the speed of issuing Education and Heath Care Plans, 90%
being issued on time whilst Greenwich lagged on 35%.
Councillor Lisa Moore (Conservative, Longlands) was pleased to see a 21% (£9·6 million) increase in cash for Children’s
Educational Services. “Covid has placed an unprecedented demand” on services
which she has seen at close quarters due to her work for the NHS. Domestic abuse
from alcohol and other things was a significant factor and once again the Covid
lockdown was cited as a cause. (Which Government dreamed up that idea and had it enforced
with unnecessary violence one might ask.)
Councillor Cameron Smith (Conservative, St. Mary’s & St. James)
once again showed his concern for small businesses and he saw
on-line shopping and ULEZ as significant problems.
People from Kent are no longer patronising Outer London businesses. “High
Streets contribute to our civic pride and are becoming more core to our
finances”, already contributing more than £50 million of Business Rates and
maybe more under any future funding review.
Smaller High Streets without large shops offering free parking lose out to those
that do and to Bluewater. Traders always asked for better street cleaning, a
visible police presence and “above all” a more considered parking policy.
Instead we get higher parking charges and overnight parking charges. (Cameron
dressed up his comments more diplomatically than that and conceded that Bexley
Council was not quite as “punitive” as Greenwich and Bromley’s parking policies.)
Councillor Andrew Curtois (Conservative, Falconwood & Welling) said the
Opposition does not come up with budget ideas and rebutted their suggestion that
central Government has failed Councils by insufficiently funding them. “That is wrong
in so many ways. Bexley has weathered the storm by applying good old
Conservative values” and the Socialist view that money trees solve all ills is
wrong. “After 13 years of a Labour administration they left a note to say there
was no money left. We cannot risk a return to Labour economics.”
Councillor Chris Taylor (Crook Log) who was a victim of UKIP in 2014 found an excuse to
re-use his favourite
description of Labour Amendments. It was “a back of a fag packet effort” (2011 budget,
2014 budget)
and that was about it really. His speech was itself something of a fag packet job but
nevertheless given a round of applause.
Councillor Sally Hinkley (Labour, Belvedere) was particularly concerned about
the new parking charges. “Short stay charges have been increased across the
borough. It will impact residents and if it deters use, traders too who we claim
to support.” Except for three locations all-day charges have also increased.
“Albany Park and Bexley High Street were £5·70 in 2019, £9·10 in 2021 but back
now to to £5·90. Sidcup Place from £10, to £12·20, then £15·80 but now down to
£6·80.” Why if charges were uncompetitively high have we had to wait a
number of years to see common sense prevail? (Come on now Sally, we used to
have a vindictive idiot in charge of Parking and now we haven’t.)
New evening charges are to be imposed in Sidcup Place. Mill Road, Nuxley Road,
Avenue Road, Old Farm Avenue, Bexley High Street, Westwood Lane, Nag’s
Head Lane, Grassington Road, Main Road, Thanet Road, Albany Park, Gayton Road
and Felixstowe Road. To summarise her words, “How is that supporting the night time trade?”
She was not sure if traders could weather the latest increases. (Will it be
goodbye to the Abbey Arms in Wilton Road? Maybe I was wrong about not having an idiot in charge.)
Councillor Howard Jackson (Conservative, Barnehurst) only made political points. Best to ignore him.
Maybe Cabinet Member Diment was thinking
empty vessels make the most noise again.
Councillor Rags Sandhu (Conservative, Bexleyheath) rambled on somewhat praising Jeremy Hunt’s budget along the way
and also finding time to criticise Councillor Francis.
Councillor Brian Bishop (Barnehurst) said that the Conservative budget, despite
the pressures of Covid, war and inflation, supported local businesses, growth,
health, social care, education, housing, environmental services. leisure and
infrastructure. He’s definitely swallowed the Making Bexley Even Better mantra
hook line and sinker. “It is a fantastic budget” and those opposite blew every
opportunity to contribute to it.
Without a single occurrence of Making Bexley Even Better so far and my
predictions not proving to be particularly accurate; maybe it is time to leave the rest of
the meeting until another time.