1 January (Part 2) - Must do better
After ten days of regurgitating old news it is time to tackle some new
subjects and the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities report
into Bexley’s poor financial state will provide the fall back position.
The report follows on from
Bexley's skirmish with near bankruptcy a year ago and
to my inexpert eye it identifies historical problems which many people, including
the Labour Group and even I, saw coming.
You can only sell off the family silver once
for example and some of the investments look to be unwise with “significant
risks” however the report is not without some optimism for the future. The most
frequently occurring phrase is the need for close monitoring.
In a Ministerial letter dated 8th December Council Leader Teresa O’Neill is required to respond to the report
“within the next month” which is a rather vague phrase which could be interpreted as by 31st January.
In coming days the more interesting parts of the report will appear here in bite sized chunks.