Saturday, June 19, 2010
Where would you cut wasted spending in Tonbridge?...
As new Chancellor, George Osbourne, lines himself up for possibly the harshest budget in recent memory Tonbridge Blog asks how will this effect Tonbridge? Where will the cuts fall, how deep will they be and where should they fall? What would you do if you were in charge? For example would the new Government have allowed the extravagant new Gateway building at the castle council offices? What about cycle routes? Are they worth maintaining or a waste of time and money? Will the axe fall on the A21 dualling project? What about the Cottage Hospital? How safe is its future? What projects are crucial enough to ring fence? It's likely to effct us all in varying degrees so let's hear some views....
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3 comments:
The cuts to the grants given to the local councils TMBC and KCC were anounced last week and if I remember correctely TMBC cut was zero for the comming year. The Gateway was joint funded by both these councils and KCC will only suffer a cut of £15 millions. You may recall when 2 years ago KCC lost £50 millions in the Icelandic banks their attitude was that it would not affect services in anyway in a budget of over £1000 millions. But now they are playing a different tune over the £15 million. The first KCC cuts affect care homes for the elderly which they are closing but non near Tonbridge. But KCC's spending on non essential services and paying off staff has been well document in the press recently. Like the £365,000 pay off to one member of staff that only stayed for 1 year because he did not like the commute to Kent!
Projects like the scrapped Kent TV on which they spent £2 millions and still intend to spend £250,000 p.a. in a different form.
Here in West Kent you may not know what KCC have spent in East Kent. £8 millions towards the new Turner Gallery in Margate, Millions in supporting a business park at Manston airport and investing heavily in the airport itself.
But in Tonbridge there will be no impact on the Building Schools for the Future program, there were non planned in the next few phases and we have West Kent College under way and Pembury Hospital nearing completion.
So although the Osbourne budget will affect individuals with possible VAT and tax rises, if all we loose is the A21 scheme we can be thankful.
There's at least four traffic warden salarys that could be binned.
Yes ! and a complete army of SS workers could be sacked and the money saved re-invested in families instead of destroying them
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