ConservativeHome's Local Government Blog

Eric Pickles predicts "big Tory gains" at the local elections

That's according to this piece by the Guardian's political editor, Patrick Wintour.

The Conservative Party chairman, who was campaigning in the West Country today, reportedly predicts that the Conservatives will win "more than 40% of the vote" and gain "more than 100" Labour seats at the local election contests for the 27 county councils and seven unitaries up for election on 4th June .

Wintour adds that privately the Conservatives' most optimistic forecast is to win a third of the 445 seats which Labour is defending.

Yesterday, Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University wrote that the four remaining Labour-run county councils - Derbyshire, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire - would be lost by the party if the swing against Labour on election day reflects that currently registered by the opinion polls.

Jonathan Isaby

Eric Pickles urges Conservative councillors: "Get in touch with your inner Tory"

A little earlier I posted a piece by shadow local government minister Bob Neill reporting back from the Conservative Councillors' Association annual conference, which has been taking place over the last  couple of days.

In his address to the conference today, party chairman Eric Pickles urged all present to "get in touch with their inner Tory".

With the present Government only expected to remain in power for at most a further 14 months, he said it was time for councils to break free from the shackles of delivering Labour's agenda, and push ahead with distinctive Conservative solutions to deliver the change the country so badly needs.

"The change we need to bring will be so much easier to achieve if our Conservative councils began to urgently implement our agenda," he said.

Mr Pickles said that this Conservative agenda should be focused on:

• Neighbourhood accountability;
• Helping families and businesses through the recession;
• Bringing decision making closer to people; and
• Tackling our broken society.

He also asked councillors to question whether they really needed a Chief Executive, stating that while all organisations needed someone to give them strategic direction, they could be so much more effective if they shared experiences and expertise.  He urged councils to look at sharing their highest paid officers, and that this should go beyond councils to organisations such as Primary Care Trusts.

He also lamented the fact that the exorbitant salaries being offered by some councils now mean that smaller authorities are either being priced out of the market or being forced to pay up.

Jonathan Isaby

Eric Pickles plans purge of 'Town Hall fat cats'

According to reports in The Times and Financial Times Eric Pickles MP wants to encourage local councils to cut costs by pooling the administration and delivery of certain key services and, as a reward, they will get the opportunity to keep more of the council tax that they raise.  The FT identifies "childcare services, council tax, benefits administration, waste disposal, IT and payroll functions" as functions most likely to be pooled.

Mr Pickles hinted at these reforms during a Q&A with this website, just before Christmas:

"Reorganisation by structure is rather old-fashioned, we will change local government from within by way of function and powers. We will encourage local authorities to share power and finance on common problems."

The Times reports that "dozens of council chiefs who earn more than Cabinet ministers would lose their jobs as clusters of councils merged their frontline services and backroom operations to provide better value for money."

The policy development is another victory for The TaxPayers' Alliance that has led the campaign against 'Town Hall fat cats'.

Tim Montgomerie

4pm: The Guardian: "Labour said that six out of the eight highest earning council chiefs were employed by Conservative-run authorities, and said that the proposal revealed a "serious political rift" between the Tory high command and its councillors on the ground. Hazel Blears, the local government secretary, accused her Conservative shadow, Eric Pickles, of being "all over the place" on the issue, pointing out that government plans to cut town hall salary bills by merging councils into unitary authorities were opposed by the Tories."

Eric Pickles warns of "nice neighbourhood tax"

Boxing Day's Telegraph carried the following story: Labour planning secret tax on 'nice houses'.

It appears that Labour has divided Britain up into 10,000 localities with particularly 'nice' localities likely to receive higher council tax bills if Labour wins the next election.  Shadow Secretary of State Eric Pickles told The Telegraph:

"The cat is out of the bag that Gordon Brown's tax inspectors are preparing for a council tax revaluation after the general election. Labour Ministers have developed a 21st century Domesday Book – carving up England's towns and villages into anonymous 'localities' for taxation. Family homes in middle England which enjoy lower rates of crime, less traffic or a friendly community now face the prospect of another tax bombshell. Given the chance, there is nothing that Gordon Brown will not tax."

Susie Squire of The TaxPayers' Alliance added her own voice to the protests:

"Council tax has already increased by 50% over the last ten years, and any further tax hikes would be a disgrace, particularly as ordinary people continue to struggle in the credit crunch. Many pensioners and others who have owned their property over a long period may find themselves suddenly footing an unexpectedly large bill, through no fault or action of their own. It's time council tax came down, for everyone."

Tim Montgomerie

Eric Pickles answers a final tranche of your questions

Here is the final installment of answers to the questions you recently posed to shadow communities and local government secretary, Eric Pickles. Here he covers localism, regional planning and the structure of local councils.

We published Eric's first and second tranches of replies on the site yesterday.

Questions from pp, B J Thomson and Michael: What are your views on "localism", as espoused by Daniel Hannan and Douglas Carswell in The Plan? Do you believe in greater use of local referendums as a way of holding local councils to account? Do you think the party should be championing the policy of having directly elected local police chiefs more loudly?

Eric Pickles: I have always believed that people know what is best for their own community. That is why I am completely committed to localism and handing power back to people. You will have seen our announcement to give local people a greater say over the level of their council tax by requiring Councils proposing excessive rises to hold a referendum of council tax payers. This is just the first in a whole raft of proposals we will be announcing to hand back control from Whitehall. In the new year we will be launching a Decentralisation Green paper which is fizzing with news ideas to end the Ministerial command and control system that has been established under Labour. Policies such as the elected police chiefs are just one piece of our plan to trust people to take important decisions.

Eric Pickles answers more of your questions

We have already published the first installment of answers to the questions you recently posed about local government reorganisation to shadow communities and local government secretary, Eric Pickles. Here is his second set of answers, covering how Conservative councils can be Conservative, local councils' use of anti-terrorism powers to spy one people, the Conservative revival in the north of England and the regularity of rubbish collections.

His final responses will be published tomorrow morning.

Questions from David Cooper and Deborah: What are your recommendations for strengthening the resolve of Conservative councillors, especially those in authorities that have recently changed hands, to deal with executive officers who either drag their feet over plans for efficiencies and savings or condone/encourage unacceptable treatment of council taxpayers in the name of the council? And how should the Conservative Party deal with those councillors who wore blue rosettes to get elected but who do not follow Conservative principles?

Eric Pickles: I believe in democracy, and as such I think elected representatives should make decisions in the interest of their communities, not unelected and unaccountable officials. The first question I always ask our council leaders is 'how would your electorate know you are a Conservative council?' It is surprising how many don't have an answer. It was the case that some of our Councils were delivering a version of Labour lite – delivering the government's agenda in an efficient and effective way that you would expect from a Tory council. But the time has come to break the consensus. I recently called on out councillors to "just say no" to the government if a Whitehall proposal wasn't in the best interests of their electorate. I am delighted that many of my local government colleagues have accepted that challenge. The clear illustration of this is the number of councils who have signed up to our council tax freeze policy. Those Councils make me extremely proud.

Eric Pickles: I'll have a pearl-handled revolver waiting in my drawer for the first civil servant who suggests another local government reorganisation

Last month we asked ConservativeHome readers to submit questions for Eric Pickles, the shadow secretary of state for communities and local government. Here is the first installment of his answers, covering a number of issues raised about local government reorganisation.

The remaining answers will be posted in installments this afternoon and tomorrow morning.

Question from jennywren: The way that we are going by the time the Conservatives get into power in 2010 (probably) Local Government is going to be in the most terrible mess, with a mixture of unitary and two tier authorities, plus two tier councils that are in the throes of transferring into unitaries. How will you cope with this lack of uniformity when it comes to policy-making?

Eric Pickles: Reorganisation by structure is rather old-fashioned, we will change local government from within by way of function and powers. We will encourage local authorities to share power and finance on common problems.

Question from Jonathan Holborow: Would it be unwise to amalgamate further district councils into unitary authorities during a first Conservative term in office, given the economic situation and a probable lack of backing within the Shadow Cabinet?

Eric Pickles: Yes.

Question from Robert Reynolds: Will you guarantee that under a Conservative government, areas like Merseyside will not be forced to become "city regions" and that the people of such areas would be given a referendum on the issue if it came up?

Eric Pickles: Yes.

Question from Mr R G Rose: Will a new Conservative government make some attempt to return Cheshire and other abolished counties, to true local government and stop this unwanted move to regionalisation?

Eric Pickles: Too late for Cheshire, but we would look at how far other proposals had progressed before making a final decision.

Question from Lindsay Jenkins: Will a Conservative government return amalgamated unitary authorities to the previous district council set-up if local people wish to see that?

Eric Pickles: A Conservative government will want to bring radical change to local authority powers and function so an expensive reorganisation will not be a priority.

Overview from Eric Pickles: Local government reorganisation has been a vanity project by Ministers, more concerned about reducing the number of Conservative Councillors than delivering better quality services for taxpayers. If I am lucky enough to become Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government I intend to keep a loaded pearl-handled revolver in my drawer, and the first civil servant who suggests local government reorganisation will be shot. I am not at all interested in the structure of local government. I am extremely determined that we make the functions of local government work as efficiently and effectively as possible to ensure we offer the best possible services and the lowest council tax possible. No city or county will forced to change their status, but we will expect councils to share back office functions to cooperate and work together, and focus on delivery not navel gazing.

Eric Pickles demands list of local authorities exposed in Icelandic banking collapse

The Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government Eric Pickles today argued that every one of more than a hundred local authorities which had cash in collapsed Icelandic banks should be made public.

"It is simply unacceptable that neither the government or the Local Government Association are publishing the list of the 116 local authorities with exposure to Iceland's banking collapse. In the interests of transparency and openness Ministers must now divulge all Councils, Regional Development Agencies, Housing Associations and government agencies that are exposed in Iceland, including any PFI contracts under threat."

Pickles: The Video

CCHQ have released an official video featuring Eric Pickles. In the video Eric explains his role as the Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government. One of his key responsibilities is to help run the Local Government Election campaign, which was particularly successful this year - with Conservatives now controlling more than half of all councils in England and Wales.

Eric Pickles warns of £1bn black hole in local councils' finances because of Iceland banking collapses

That is what Eric Pickles told this morning's Today programme.

ConHome broke this story yesterday.

The greatest exposure so far identified is Kent with deposits totalling £50 Million. The next most exposed  seems to be the Greater London Authority due to Transport for London having a £40m deposit with Kaupthing Singer & Friedlander, which has been placed into administration.

Others include:

• Westminster City Council  £17m.

• Sutton Council  £5.5m

• Havering Council  £12.5m.

• North Lincolnshire Council  £2m invested with Landsbanki and £3.5m in Heritable.

• North East Lincolnshire Council said it had £2.5m  with Landsbanki.

• Hertfordshire County Council  £17m 

• Buckinghamshire £5m

• Cornwall County Council £5m

• Barnet £27m

• Brent £15m

• Cheltenham Borough Council  £11m

• Gloucester City Council   £2m 

• Tewkesbury Borough Council £1m

• Ipswich. Undisclosed sum.

• Hillingdon. £20m

4pm update

• Haringey. Undisclosed sum

• Bromley. Undisclosed sum.

• Gateshead. Undisclosed sum.

• Dorset. £28.1m

• Solihull £3m

• Lewes  £1m

• Wakefield £9m

• Monmouthshire County Council £1.2m

• Ceredigion  £5.5m

• Rhondda Cynon Taf  £3m

• Gateshead  Undisclosed sum

• Powys £4m

• Perth  and Kinross £1m

• Bristol  £8m

• North Somerset £3m

5pm update:

Eric Pickles has issued this statement: "The Government is continuing to dither in face of a worsening problem. Hour by hour, it is clear that more and more councils have been exposed to the meltdown in Iceland's banks. Councils have literally billions on deposit. If they now all panic, pull their money out in the safest option like Government bonds, there will be adverse consequences. The withdrawal of a huge amount of the money from the banking system will destabilise it further and harm liquidity. A lower rate of return from investments will also increase pressure on council tax bills in April. Councils' investment strategies directly stem from guidance issued by John Prescott in 2004. Alistair Darling needs to rewrite this advice immediately and provide reassurance to the public that they won't see their council tax bills rise or local services cut as a result of this crisis." 

Tories to find £121m to restore weekly bin collections

In the first big policy announcement of Conservative Party Conference, David Cameron has told the Daily Mail that a Conservative Government will find the money to allow councils to restore weekly bin collections for all households.

Just over half of councils have scrapped weekly collections.

The Mail notes:

"The average cost of weekly collections is £59.80 per household per year, compared to £44.63 for fortnightly ones. That means the total cost of moving back to weekly collections is £121million. The Tories say they will raise £133million by scrapping funding for a range of inspectorates, regional assemblies, Labour's new planning superquango and forcing councils to spend less on promotion."

The following bullet points were issued in a CCHQ press release this morning:

• "A Conservative Government will change Whitehall policy so that there is an expectation that councils should offer full weekly collections, ending and reversing the Labour policy of bin cuts, which are harming public health and the local environment.
• Central funding will be offered for all councils to have a proper weekly collection, so they can offer a proper refuse service, as well as comprehensive recycling collections. This will be provided by scrapping a series of unelected quangos and local government bureaucracy.
• Councils, subject to the ballot box, will still have the final decision on what services to offer – but they will no longer be forced and bullied into cutting services because of Whitehall diktats.
• Gordon Brown’s plans for new bin taxes will be scrapped. Labour’s stealth taxes threaten to harm the environment by fuelling fly-tipping and backyard burning.
• Conservatives will champion green incentives – from trials for free green compost bins, water butts, green cones and garden wormeries, to the ‘Recyclebank’ scheme, used in America, where householders are paid for recycling.
• New powers will be given to councils to introduce local council tax cuts for recycling and green behaviour."

Eric Pickles MP commented:

“Gordon Brown is making it increasingly hard for families to throw away their waste responsibly. Despite soaring levels of council tax, local residents are being hit by cuts to collections, over-zealous use of bin fines and the prospect of expensive new bin taxes which will push up the cost of living. Councils are getting the blame for policies imposed by Whitehall. Conservatives believe that decent rubbish collections are a vital front-line council service to help protect the local environment and public health. We reject Labour’s approach of state bullying, cutting services and higher taxes. We will provide funding for those councils that wish to introduce proper weekly rubbish collections, on top of comprehensive recycling services. We will make it easier for families to go green and increase recycling by working with households, not punishing them with heavy-handed bin taxes, bin cuts and bin fines."

Margaret Eaton is new Chair of the Local Government Association

Further to our report last week we can confirm that Margaret Eaton is the new Chair of the Local Government Association.  She won an overwhelming majority of the votes cast in a five candidate contest.

Eric Pickles has issued this statement welcoming Cllr Eaton to her new post:

"I would like to congratulate Margaret on her overwhelming victory, in what was an experienced and talented field.  Margaret is an old friend from my Bradford City Council days, and she brings considerable experience of local government. I have no doubt that Margaret will prove to be a fearless champion for local government, and the residents they represent."

This was the manifesto statement she issued to the Local Government Chronicle:

"Following in the footsteps of Sir Simon Milton as chairman of the Local Government Association will be a privilege, but a daunting challenge for whoever is selected from such a wide range of candidates.

Since the creation of the LGA, I have been involved at the highest level. During the past six years I have been first, deputy leader, and then leader of the Conservative group and vice-chairman of the LGA.

All of these roles would help me to continue the excellent work of the previous chairmen, and in particular to ensure that central government takes proper notice of the democratic importance of local government.

In the run-up to a general election over the next 18 months it will be vitally important to position the LGA at the heart of political thinking and policy development.

All local authorities are increasingly strapped for cash. The LGA will need to demonstrate its relevance to all types of local authority and also that the subscription is value for money.

Some issues, such as the pressure on budgets and council tax, are universal to all authorities while others, such as the government's ill-considered proposals for eco-towns, affect a relatively small number but are no less important.

The LGA is a cross-party organisation. Most of my political life has been spent in 'hung' councils with highly charged politics. In such circumstances, productive work can take place only if good relationships are maintained in spite of political differences.

If elected, I would bring to the task my years of experience as leader of the Conservative LGA group, chairman of the Conservative Councillors Association, leader of Bradford City MDC and 22 years of being a front-line councillor for Bingley Rural ward. These jobs have developed my skills, inflated my energy, prepared my address book and given me the insights and foresight to understand and tackle the issues confronting local government."

Council tax dodgers mean £746 million in lost revenue

A survey of uncollected tax by a local government workers' trade union today revealed that in the last financial year, £745,666,831 of due council tax was unpaid.

"In 2007/08, the GMB said the council with the most uncollected tax was Glasgow, which had £22m outstanding at the end of the financial year. Birmingham had £16.2m outstanding; Edinburgh had £13.2m and Manchester had £12.5m. Across London, a total of £138.5m of tax was uncollected."

Shadow Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles responded to the research by saying:

"Such waste will be a bitter pill to swallow for hard pressed families struggling with the mounting cost of food and fuel.

"It is ironic that on the day Gordon Brown launches his great fightback yet more incompetence is exposed at the heart of the Labour government.

"If Labour managed to get a grip on council tax dodgers then perhaps we could have avoided a situation whereby council tax has doubled in the last decade and frontline services have been savagely cutback."

Eric Pickles' tribute to Sandy Bruce-Lockhart

Yesterday we reported the sad death of Lord Bruce-Lockhart.  Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government, adds his own personal tribute to Sandy below:

"I last saw Sandy a couple of weeks ago at a Royal Garden Party, he was looking frail and he told me that his Doctors had stopped the treatment for his illness.  He was a realistic man who knew what the natural consequences would be, yet his inner sparkle remained as constant as it was in his prime.  We had an animated discussion about policy and the future and because of the freshness of his ideas it was possible, for a few brief moments, to forget how ill he was.

It is impossible to over estimate how influential Sandy was on local and national government.  His influence extended beyond the Conservative Party and touched the thinking right across the political spectrum.  I know a number of Labour Ministers who would seek his advice before making policy decisions; even the most partisan were not immune from his charms.

Urbane and erudite with the discipline of a diplomat, he would retain confidences and offer sage opinions but beneath that civilised exterior there was a steely determination to get things done.  He transformed Kent County Council into a European Leader in tackling deprivation and poverty.  He was among the first to break down the barriers between Districts and Counties to offer single gateways to services. 

As the first Conservative Chairman of the Local Government Association he enhanced its reputation and its effectiveness, mainly because everyone trusted Sandy.

I have worked closely with Sandy for the best part of a decade and I think it is fair to say that we come from completely different backgrounds, but I have rarely met anyone that I have agreed with more.  A few years ago I sought his help with some work I was doing on localism, trying to put a distinctive centre-right stamp on it.  By the end of most meetings we were capable of ending each other’s sentences. 

He helped set a course that will see the Conservative Party fundamentally shift power back to local communities.

I admired Sandy greatly and I mourn his loss."

People who live alone face surveillance from council tax inspectors

The 7.5 million people who receive a 25% discount from their council tax bill because they live alone are more likely to have to prove it in the months ahead.

One council, Thurrock in Essex, asks people to sign a declaration that permits the council to enter their home to prove that they are single occupants.

A spokesman for the Local Government Association told The Telegraph that the crackdown was necessary because of fraud:

"Millions of pounds are being ripped off from the taxpayer by a minority of people who deliberately cheat the system by claiming discounts. Councils are clamping down hard on fraudsters who pretend to live alone when there are actually more people living in a house and try cheating the tax payer.  Pretending to live alone to defraud the taxpayer is not a victimless offence. This is money that could be spent on the genuinely vulnerable or keeping council tax down."

Eric Pickles MP, Tory spokesman on local government, is concerned, however, at local authorities' use of surveillance powers to check on single occupancy:

"Day by the day under Labour, the rights and liberties of law-abiding citizens are being undermined, with more and more state officials trying to enter and spy on people's homes. It may be appropriate for local authorities to check that council tax discounts are not wrongly claimed. But it is wholly disproportionate to threaten higher council tax bills if residents do not allow state officials into their bedrooms.  This is another worrying sign of function creep. State duties originally intended to tackle fraud are now being over-used by bureaucrats in a heavy-handed, intrusive manner."

Overfilling your rubbish bin could cost you a larger fine than shoplifting

The Sunday Times reveals that the Government is recommending a fine of £75 to £110 for families who overfill their rubbish bins.  The newspaper notes that this scale of penalty would be "higher than the £80 on-the-spot fines levied by police for offences ranging from being drunk and disorderly to shoplifting".

Eric Pickles told The Sunday Times: “It is clear Whitehall bureaucrats are instructing town halls to target householders with fines for minor breaches. Yet with the slow death of weekly collections and shrinking bins, it is increasingly hard for families to dispose of their rubbish responsibly. It is fundamentally unfair that householders are now getting hammered with larger fines than shoplifters get for stealing.”

Pickles attacks plans to re-unionise local government

Shadow Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles has condemned Government plans to make central government contracts conditional on private firms promoting trade union membership. The proposals in the Cabinet Office document ‘Access to Skills, Trade Unions and Advice in Government Contracting’ include the words:

“[S]ervice providers are strongly encouraged to communicate the information on Trade Unions in that Annex to their employees. This should be done in ways that fit with their business processes, for example on notice boards, in the employee handbook or during their induction. This is to ensure that all employees can access information, advice and support at work and understand their rights in relation to trade union membership… Good employers respect these rights and some welcome unions on to their premises at agreed times”

Mr Pickles condemned the move as a policy favour to the trade unions, given in expectation of direct financial support and of further gains to the Labour Party through the unions’ political levy.

“We aren’t just returning to an era of beer and sandwiches for the unions. Ministers’ plans to re-unionise local government is a deeply chilling development that will undermine industrial relations, push up costs and mean more strike disruption.”

Conservatives have also revealed provisions to extend this policy to the NHS and to all local government services in 2009.

According to the Electoral Commission, 92.6% of the Labour Party’s funding came from the trade unions in the first quarter of 2008.

Labour set to give 'bin men' new reasons not to collect your rubbish

The law has existed for 130 years but The Telegraph reports that a household's right to have its rubbish collected by their local authority is to be scrapped by Labour.

Conservative HQ believe that the change could mean no bin collection if...

"(a) the bin was put out the night before rather than on the morning;
(b) the bin was not on kerbside but was placed inside the garden by a back door;
(c) having a full bin; or
(d) if the recycling boxes had the wrong sort of material in a confusing mix of different boxes."

Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government, issued this statement:

“Ministers in Whitehall have masterminded the cuts to weekly rubbish collections, over-zealous bin fines and shrinking the size of household bins. Gordon Brown’s bin bullies now want to take the country back to the 19th Century by abolishing councils’ duties to collect rubbish, and give bin men any excuse they want not to collect your bin.

 “It is disgraceful that these new laws are being rushed through Parliament with no debate and no vote. Labour are becoming increasingly obsessed with silencing the voice of the people. Given rubbish collection is one of the most unionised part of local government, I fear that this will give new powers to militant shop stewards to refuse to collect bins for spurious, time-saving reasons.”

“People genuinely want to improve recycling and go green, but Labour’s policy of bin cuts and bin taxes will fuel fly-tipping, backyard burning and harm public health. These changes will fuel the public backlash at the Government’s rubbish policies. Under Gordon Brown, local residents are paying exorbitant levels of council tax, but are failing to get decent public services in return.”

UNISON celebrates closure of nursery schools and services for disabled

An email from Eric Pickles MP has alerted us to this page on Unison's website, celebrating the impact today's strike action is having on communities across Britain:

Here are some key quotes:

"Reports coming in that Wyre and Kidderminster are effectively closed - which is great work by our team."

"5000 driving tests cancelled as driving examiners back the action."

"Barnet branch in Greater London region calls in - they've shut all the nursery schools."

"Carmarthenshire depot UNISON members have been picketing since 4.30am this morning."Everything locked down. No dust, no highways or parks and gardens working." Someone get these champions a cuppa!"

"News of strike-forced closures in from Calderdale, Yorkshire and Humberside region - Westgate House Halifax Town Hall Hebden Bridge Picture House Central Library, Halifax Elland Library Hebden Bridge Library Mytholmroyd Library Skircoat Library Todmorden Library Jerusalem Farm Camp Site Hebden Bridge Cash Office Hebden Bridge Council Offices Learning Disability Services at Chatham Street, Royd Square, Clay House and Hipperholme. Todmorden Market And on top of that, no large or small mobile library service."

It's one thing to strike, quite another to celebrate the misery the action causes.

3pm: Check out Alex Deane's blog on this same subject.

Eric Pickles talks to Stephen Greenhalgh about the Conservative Councils Innovation Unit

Related links:

> Eric Pickles' previous video.

> Stephen Greenhalgh: Help me write a bold Conservative blueprint for local government

Local councillors tell Eric Pickles what they want David Cameron to say about local government

And you'll love Eric's naughty ending to the video!

Eric Pickles' previous video diary.

Pickles comments on the "non-cooperation" story

The Guardian today picked up on Pickles' speech to Conservative councillors at the start of the month urging them to sometimes "say no" to the Government's demands of them.

In the second instalment of Pickles' video diary he says he is not taking a Conservative victory for granted, there is still a lot to do, but that Conservative Councils should not spend too much time helping the government plan for a Labour fourth term:

The TPA has welcomed a letter Eric sent out last cautioning Conservative councillors against the bin tax.

> This is the second in a series of videos from Eric.  The first is here.

Three minutes of Eric Pickles

Eric Pickles is producing a video diary for ConservativeHome from this year's LGA Conference. This first installment also features Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley.

Tory local government leaders disagree on new LGA ad campaign

The BBC is reporting that the Local Government Association is embarking on a major advertising campaign to promote the work of local authorities.  The campaign is defended by the Chairman of the LGA, Sir Simon Milton:

"Most people just think that the council collects the bins and they haven't the faintest clue of the vast range of services that town halls provide.  From archaeology to zoology, from cradle to grave, councils provide over 800 services to improve people's lives and help them get safe and sound through the day."

But Sir Simon - former leader of Westminster Council and now a key adviser to Boris Johnson - is not backed up by Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government:

“This is a damning portrait of Gordon Brown's Britain. Binge-drinking is spiralling out of control and our streets are littered with mountains of rubbish. Council tax has doubled, yet frontline services have been brutally cut back.  People will be offended that not only is taxpayers' cash being wasted on this propaganda but also that such disgusting images are being used.”

We can't find how much these ads will cost.  A selection are posted below:

 

Eric Pickles hopes to depoliticise funding of town halls

We recently noted Philip Dunne MP's findings that rural councils - largely Tory - were losing out to urban councils - more likely to be Labour.

Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Local Government, signals that the Conservatives want to stop the possibility of any future manipulation:

“We are toying with the idea of going towards an Australian system of grant distribution – to take it out of the hands of the politicians so that we no longer have the capacity to punish our enemies and reward our friends.”

Mr Pickles gave the hint within the main story in The Sunday Express: The Great Council Tax Giveaway.

The story suggests that the Conservatives want to give council tax refunds of up to £1,400 to 400,000 households that have been allocated to the wrong council tax bands.  Misallocations are obviously injustices that need to be corrected but lower council tax for some will also mean more pain for others.

Eric Pickles urges Tory councils to "say no" to this dying Labour government's demands of them

Later this morning Eric Pickles MP will be addressing the Conservative Councillors Association's Leadership Conference in Nottingham.  He intends to deliver a blunt message: Stop Implementing The Orders Of This Dying Labour Government And Start Behaving Like Conservative Councils.

Here are three key extracts of what he is expected to say:

Labour is dying: "Time is running out for Hazel [Blears] and her friends. Every week that passes the government’s authority diminishes. With every passing week their ability to dictate to local authorities gets that little bit less. In its remaining few months in office Labour now has fewer levers of power to pull.  The ability for Labour Ministers to influence local events without our support is slipping away."

Conservative councils have waited too long to stand up to Labour bullying: "Over the past 10 years Conservative local authorities have cooperated with the government to make the best of ill thought out plans and deliver the best possible results for local residents. Swamped by ever changing government targets, overburdened by red tape and overloaded by regulation we have delivered quality services and low council tax. The time is overdue for Conservative Council's to stand up to this bullying and controlling government on behalf of their communities. It is time for Conservative councils to “just say no.”"

It's time for Conservative councils to be Conservative: "The electorate in a series of successive elections have soundly rejected Gordon Brown and this Labour government. Right across the land Labour has lost its mandate, it is unreasonable to Conservative councils to deliver for the government unless there is consensus. We are not in the business of delivering “Labour Lite;” local priorities now must take precedent. Local residents want quality frontline services at value for money prices. They don't want their council wasting time on money on nanny state, politically correct or vanity projects. They want councils who serve the people, not wasteful or intrusive town halls who serve as agents of the state.  Local people elected a Conservative council and they have the reasonable expectation of enjoying one and anticipating a Conservative government."

Mr Pickles encourages Conservative councils to cooperate with Labour but not to underestimate their power in setting the terms for that cooperation.

One of the big themes of the next two years will be attempts by the Conservative leadership in London to encourage local councils run by the party to tap into the best and most innovative policies being pioneered by other Tory councils.  To that end Cllr Stephen Greenhalgh of Hammersmith and Fulham recently launched the Conservative Council Innovation Unit.  This has been a consistent theme of Christina Dykes in contributions to ConservativeHome; see here and here.

Tory questions unveil infestation danger of fortnightly bin collections

Questions tabled by the Conservatives have forced the Government to reveal the findings of a £27,000 study that warned of increased health risks from rats, flies and seagulls if rubbish collections were reduced in frequency.  The report found that vermin and insects could be "encouraged into the home environment" as a result of fortnightly collections.

Eric Pickles MP, Shadow Local Government Secretary, told The Sunday Telegraph:

"Ministers   have been caught red-handed trying to hide worrying research from the   Government's own scientists. There is a clear health risk from cuts to   weekly rubbish collections, as will become apparent in the summer as   temperatures increase. Under Gordon Brown, local residents are paying exorbitant levels of   council tax but are failing to get decent public services in return. People genuinely want to improve recycling and go green, but Labour's   approach of forcing rubbish cuts is not the answer, as it will harm the   local environment and public health."

Stephen Greenhalgh: Help me write a bold Conservative blueprint for local government

Stephen Greenhalgh is Conservative leader of Hammersmith and Fulham and a key member of the team that Boris Johnson has appointed to audit City Hall.  He won ConservativeHome.com's 2007/08 'Local Hero Award'.  In this article Stephen introduces the aims of the new Conservative Council Innovation Unit and its aim to write 'the bible' of best practice for Conservatives in local government.

This May we have witnessed the death of both New Labour and old Labour in power. Last week Eric Pickles masterminded Labour's first by-election defeat since the 1978 by-election in Ilford North, a Labour seat, when a young Tessa Jowell lost to Vivian Bendall who is currently my Association Chairman. A couple of weeks ago my Labour predecessor as Council Leader described the loss of Ken Livingstone as Mayor of London "as the worst blow to Labour since the 1992 general election defeat".

However, many of our critics point to a lack of vision or programme for government. As we already dominate local government, our challenge is to define and articulate our Conservative vision. It is an opportunity for our party to demonstrate our priorities and goals for the communities we seek to represent.

We need to find the right language, establish Conservative values and develop a new Conservative lexicon to replace the New Labour mantras that dominate public sector thinking today.  Frankly New Labour's sole political legacy has been to rewrite the language of local government. For instance this month's pamphlet published by the SOLACE Foundation which is the professional network for local authority chief executives and senior managers is entitled "How equality shapes place: diversity and localism". Their rhetoric has been about "equality and diversity", "fairness" and "social justice" and the reality has been greater levels of inequality and a decrease in social mobility.

Labour haven't binned rubbish tax plans... they'll return after polling day

The Daily Mail reports documents uncovered by the Conservatives that show that ministers HAVE NOT shelved plans to introduce taxes on household waste but that these taxes could be introduced for 62% of households once tomorrow's elections are over.

Speaking to The Daily Mail, Eric Pickles MP said:

"Ministers know that bin taxes will cause a massive public backlash. Yet, just as with cuts to weekly rubbish collections, they are telling town halls to keep quiet until after elections. The public have a right to know if their town hall is going to increase taxes on them after election day. Labour ministers are deliberately conspiring with a cadre of town hall bureaucrats to keep the public, candidates and councillors in the dark."

Families will be hardest hit by these plans and although the initial annual estimate of the tax was £30, ministers have now admitted that the charge is likelier to be £50.  The Daily Mail suggests that the cost could actually be £100.

Related ConservativeHome link: How council tax has outpaced inflation under Labour and how other local stealth taxes have rocketed

Eric Pickles accuses Labour of favouring urban north in local government funding

This from the Daily Mail: "Labour has been accused of giving extra subsidies and grants to northern towns and cities, which allow them to keep local taxes down.  Tories, who obtained the information through Westminster questions, said yesterday that Labour has been favouring its own voters.

Shadow Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles said:

"Everyone has faced soaring levels of council tax, with homes across the South and East Anglia being clobbered the most under Gordon Brown.  The police levy on council tax is going through the roof, but police numbers are being cut. Local services like weekly rubbish collections are slowly being cut, while bills rise year on year. People are paying more and getting less.""