So, what is the Lib Dem viewpoint on forthcoming government cuts in the council budget?
Considering the mess we have inherited, they are inevitable, LibDem leader Cllr Dave Wood tells us.
Speaking on the BBC Radio Suffolk’s Breakfast Show he said ” it is inevitable that there will have to be be cuts – and ones to frontline services. The important thing is that we must make sure that children and the vulnerable are protected as best we can.”
” There continues to be a lot of talk about the Councils in Suffolk sharing services,” Cllr Wood added. “Lets stop being precious – it is okay to talk but now is the time to act! We missed out a couple of years back squabbling over whether Suffolk should be unitary or not, and so we missed the boat. Yet a three tier system is unwieldy, expensive and leads to unnecessary duplication. Lets forget ideology and go for practicality. Now is the time to open the debate once again – and this time, lets go for it!”
District / County Councillors are : Ipswich 48 / 13 ; Suffolk Coastal 43 / 13 ; Waveney 48 / 13 ; Forest Heath 27 / 5 ; St Edmundsbury 45 / 11 ; Mid Suffolk 40 / 10 ; Babergh 43 / 10 – TOTALS 294 / 75.
Would, say, 75 Councillors be enough in a single Unitary Suffolk? Or would 150 be better ? They would, I suggest, need to be full time and paid appropriately.
Could they have District responsibilities – for such as planning ?
Forest Heath might be a bit light with just five Councillors – unless a few Wards could be pinched from East Cambs.
I do think Unitaries would lead to more efficient, economic and effective local government by avoiding time consuming committee systems – although the actual wage bill might not be much less than now.