David Cameron's council elections launch speech

David Cameron's speech in Sale yesterday including the following passage about the Council elections:

We promised to get rid of the red tape and political correctness that stops people getting on their lives....

Now I don't know about you but I think April 29th is going to be a special day, very special for two young people who make a fantastic couple.

But it also going to be a very special day for everyone in this country. It's a one-in-a-generation chance for all of us to come together and have the mother of all parties, with friends, neighbours,
colleagues.

Already, four thousand street parties have been planned across the country. And Samantha and I are having one in Downing Street for local people and charities too.

But tragically communities up and down the country are having their plans wreaked by council red tape:

The spoil sports at Coventry City Council have told people they can have a street party - but only if there is no music, no bouncy castle, no rides, no entertainment, basically no fun.

Kirklees Council have banned home-made cakes and tea from all its premises, including during Royal Wedding celebrations, because of yes, you guessed: health and safety.

Newcastle City Council who told one guy who wanted to hold a street party that he had to stump up for £5-million in public liability insurance.

...this is ridiculous.

These pen-pushers and busy-bodies are completely wrong.

They have no right to stop you from having fun.

Let me put it like this, I'm the Prime Minister and I'm telling you. If you want a street party - then you go ahead and have one.

The truth is you don't need a food licence, or insurance, or pay a load of fees, you don't need an entertainment licence, you don't need to pay your council to close the road, you don't need a whole lot of street furniture - all you need to do is let your council know if you need to close the road.

And I say this to all councils: don't interfere, don't get in the way, don't make problems where you know there should be none. Let people get on and have fun.

And if people ask you on the campaign trail: what have Conservative councils ever done for our area?

Point them to the work of Trafford Council.

Yes, they've faced some incredibly tough decisions - and like every council they've got to work harder than ever to deliver more for less.

But by cutting back office, sharing services, by binning vanity projects - even by selling the Mayor's personalised number plate -

....they're making millions of pounds worth of savings this year.

That's money which they're putting back into frontline services - including an extra £4 million to support vulnerable children and older people.

Now just compare that to Labour-run Manchester City Council next door.

They actually received a smaller reduction in the grant than Trafford.

They've got the highest level of funding per head in the area.

Their Chief Executive earns around £70,000 more than any Cabinet Minister, including me.

They are still spending money on design directors, communication tsars, and all the rest of it.......even a jolly to the south of France, I'm not making that up either.

And despite all this money, they've actually gone ahead with 2,000 cuts to staff posts as well as cuts to children's and adult services.......job cuts they announced on the day coincidentally of the Oldham East and Saddleworth election.

It's absolutely wrong to cut services before cutting waste and bureaucracy.

So I say let the message go out from Sale:

If you want lower levels of council tax and good value for money from your council......if you want to make sure money gets to frontline services.......vote Conservative on May 5th.

Let's remind people of the appalling mess, the waste, the debt, the deficit, left by the last Labour government ........ and let this be the message on every doorstep - Don't let Labour do to your council what they did to our country. People will understand that, people will respond and we will fight a good campaign on that basis.