Would you vote in favour of raising taxes?
Discussion
Liverpool's mayor is hoping that the people of Liverpool vote for a tax rise.
The people of Liverpool could be asked to vote on whether they should pay up to 10% more council tax to help their “desperate” local authority maintain public services in the face of government cuts. Joe Anderson, Liverpool’s mayor, wants to hold a public referendum – the first of its kind in the UK – to ask residents whether they would support a significant rise above the 3.99% cap.
The people of Liverpool could be asked to vote on whether they should pay up to 10% more council tax to help their “desperate” local authority maintain public services in the face of government cuts. Joe Anderson, Liverpool’s mayor, wants to hold a public referendum – the first of its kind in the UK – to ask residents whether they would support a significant rise above the 3.99% cap.
article said:
Joe Anderson, Liverpool’s mayor, wants to hold a public referendum – the first of its kind in the UK – to ask residents whether they would support a significant rise above the 3.99% cap.
The council is warning that if it does not increase tax then it faces cuts to all its services, with adult social care and children’s services the hardest hit. Anderson said that all council-run services, including libraries, sports centres, maintenance of parks, highway repairs, street cleaning and rubbish collections, would have to be cut by 50%.
He admitted that the local authority had no funds left, even for basic services.
The council is warning that if it does not increase tax then it faces cuts to all its services, with adult social care and children’s services the hardest hit. Anderson said that all council-run services, including libraries, sports centres, maintenance of parks, highway repairs, street cleaning and rubbish collections, would have to be cut by 50%.
He admitted that the local authority had no funds left, even for basic services.
It's probably the mid-priced gin talking but I think I've found their problem:
Statement of Accounts 2015-16 said:
whilst the proportion of the working age population who are economically inactive is high at 34% (111,200) compared to the UK figure of 22%. Equally, long-term sickness is also about 28% higher than the UK average at 31,300 andthe proportion of working age people receiving Department of Work and Pensions related benefits is 19.2% (62,000) compared to the UK average of 12%.
REALIST123 said:
Not me. Not for local or central government. IME there are plenty of 'services' that are very poor value for money and could be stopped and lots of money wasted at all levels.
I doubt that the people of Liverpool will all think that way though.
What services would you cut? I doubt that the people of Liverpool will all think that way though.
Typical bloody council.
You have no money because you squandered it on frivolous underachieving middle management, and missmanaged contracts.
Want to balance the books? Take evryone who is a manager but not customer facing. Put them in a room. Fire 10% arbitrarily, inform there's another round of cuts in 6 months. See them all make do. Remove 10% in 6 months, again round of cuts in 6 months. At that point, remove fear but remind people that this is the new normal.
Think it's mad? When I started my current role 6 years ago, what I do now was covered by 3 people. My customer had 30 people in the matching role, now they have 3, and a share of a 12 person resource offshore. We all make do.
You have no money because you squandered it on frivolous underachieving middle management, and missmanaged contracts.
Want to balance the books? Take evryone who is a manager but not customer facing. Put them in a room. Fire 10% arbitrarily, inform there's another round of cuts in 6 months. See them all make do. Remove 10% in 6 months, again round of cuts in 6 months. At that point, remove fear but remind people that this is the new normal.
Think it's mad? When I started my current role 6 years ago, what I do now was covered by 3 people. My customer had 30 people in the matching role, now they have 3, and a share of a 12 person resource offshore. We all make do.
Some Gump said:
Typical bloody council.
You have no money because you squandered it on frivolous underachieving middle management, and missmanaged contracts.
Want to balance the books? Take evryone who is a manager but not customer facing. Put them in a room. Fire 10% arbitrarily, inform there's another round of cuts in 6 months. See them all make do. Remove 10% in 6 months, again round of cuts in 6 months. At that point, remove fear but remind people that this is the new normal.
Think it's mad? When I started my current role 6 years ago, what I do now was covered by 3 people. My customer had 30 people in the matching role, now they have 3, and a share of a 12 person resource offshore. We all make do.
That's fantastic. However it does make you realise how incompetent your (and your customer') previous management must have been, to allow themselves to become so overstaffed.You have no money because you squandered it on frivolous underachieving middle management, and missmanaged contracts.
Want to balance the books? Take evryone who is a manager but not customer facing. Put them in a room. Fire 10% arbitrarily, inform there's another round of cuts in 6 months. See them all make do. Remove 10% in 6 months, again round of cuts in 6 months. At that point, remove fear but remind people that this is the new normal.
Think it's mad? When I started my current role 6 years ago, what I do now was covered by 3 people. My customer had 30 people in the matching role, now they have 3, and a share of a 12 person resource offshore. We all make do.
My council claim to have cut to the bone but at this time of the year still send men out to sweep up and bag large areas of fallen leaves. I dunno, maybe they're the guys that at other times would be mowing the grass and would otherwise be idle.
I have a feeling once we leave the EU there is the possibility to significantly relax things surrounding landfill etc, maybe this could have an impact on council tax bills. It feels like the worst value for money tax ever.
I have a feeling once we leave the EU there is the possibility to significantly relax things surrounding landfill etc, maybe this could have an impact on council tax bills. It feels like the worst value for money tax ever.
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hstewie said:
hstewie said: If it could be shown independently that every single piece of wastage had been cut then perhaps, until then, no chance.
Is that actually possible?All companies (even the most efficient ones) have an element of waste. At what point do you say "well, that's as efficient as we're going to get"?
There are also several issues unique to the public sector. You can't pick and choose your customers and you can't control demand. So there HAS to be an element of slack in the system, to cope with peaks and troughs.
Pesty said:
And the political classes still don't get why the average man on the street doesn't trust them.Countdown said:
Is that actually possible?
All companies (even the most efficient ones) have an element of waste. At what point do you say "well, that's as efficient as we're going to get"?
There are also several issues unique to the public sector. You can't pick and choose your customers and you can't control demand. So there HAS to be an element of slack in the system, to cope with peaks and troughs.
Fair point and on reflection I agree, every bit of waste isn't possible, but there does seem to be this assumption that things are always being done as well as they could be.All companies (even the most efficient ones) have an element of waste. At what point do you say "well, that's as efficient as we're going to get"?
There are also several issues unique to the public sector. You can't pick and choose your customers and you can't control demand. So there HAS to be an element of slack in the system, to cope with peaks and troughs.
I work in IT, I'm not one of the powerfully built management consultant types that frequent NP&E but I am very familiar with the phrase "We've always done it this way" for example.
Countdown said:
There are also several issues unique to the public sector. You can't pick and choose your customers and you can't control demand. So there HAS to be an element of slack in the system, to cope with peaks and troughs.
Taking out national level aspects such as NHS and the armed forces etc to look at this locally...There is a captive customer base. Councils know how much council tax they will get, including an element of non-payment of course; also from parking fees and fines, and so on. The issue with the public sector locally isn't from their side looking out, it's from our side looking in - we have no choice as to which bunch of spendthrift interfering busybodies receives our local taxes and fees, nor about the excessive level of £mmm in reserves sitting doing nothing and earning little.
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