Borough Visits
• This week, Boris Johnson is again out on the road, meeting Londoners and talking about his plans to crackdown on crime, provide value for money and protect and preserve open spaces. He is announcing his local plans for; Croydon, Sutton, Merton, Wandsworth, Barnet, Camden, Havering, Redbridge, Richmond, Kingston, Hounslow, Brent, Harrow, Southwark, Lambeth and Tower Hamlets. Last week, he was out and about in; Edmonton, Westminster, Bexley, Bromley, Ealing and Hillingdon.
• This is in stark contrast to Ken Livingstone, who has visited Cuba and Venezuela more times than he has visited some London Boroughs.
Tuesday, 8 April 2008
Saturday, 5 April 2008
Letter to the Press
Friday 4th April, 2008
Dear Editor,
Last week Cllr Osbourne accused a resident, who wrote in claiming Kingston had the highest Council tax increase in London, of getting his facts wrong. I accuse Cllr Osbourne of spinning statistics to show his conceited Executive in light much brighter than they deserve.
Lambeth Council, which Cllr Osborune claimed to be highest council tax increase in percentage, increased council tax by £52.12 in cash terms for a Band D home while Kingston Council increased council tax by £57.57; putting Kingston in front by £5.45.
Cllr Osbourne knows he is in the wrong from the shear fact that he has searched to find the indicator that could possibly show Kingston in a better light. He used the wholly inappropriate RPI index to suggest that Kingston’s Council tax rise was below inflation (the wrong inflation, Mr Osbourne) when it was in fact above the Government official inflation of 2.2 per cent - which Kingston is higher than. And he has now chosen to use percentage increase to twist the reality of the figures on the highest increase.
If Cllr Osbourne took away all his game playing he would see that there is no getting away from the fact that Kingston is the HIGHEST council tax in London and has the HIGHEST cash increase in London. Now the question is, what is he going to do about it?
Yours,
Cllr Ken Smith
Conservative Councillor for St James Ward
Vice Chairman for Maldens and Coombe Neighbourhood
Dear Editor,
Last week Cllr Osbourne accused a resident, who wrote in claiming Kingston had the highest Council tax increase in London, of getting his facts wrong. I accuse Cllr Osbourne of spinning statistics to show his conceited Executive in light much brighter than they deserve.
Lambeth Council, which Cllr Osborune claimed to be highest council tax increase in percentage, increased council tax by £52.12 in cash terms for a Band D home while Kingston Council increased council tax by £57.57; putting Kingston in front by £5.45.
Cllr Osbourne knows he is in the wrong from the shear fact that he has searched to find the indicator that could possibly show Kingston in a better light. He used the wholly inappropriate RPI index to suggest that Kingston’s Council tax rise was below inflation (the wrong inflation, Mr Osbourne) when it was in fact above the Government official inflation of 2.2 per cent - which Kingston is higher than. And he has now chosen to use percentage increase to twist the reality of the figures on the highest increase.
If Cllr Osbourne took away all his game playing he would see that there is no getting away from the fact that Kingston is the HIGHEST council tax in London and has the HIGHEST cash increase in London. Now the question is, what is he going to do about it?
Yours,
Cllr Ken Smith
Conservative Councillor for St James Ward
Vice Chairman for Maldens and Coombe Neighbourhood
Thursday, 27 March 2008
Full Council March 26th
I put this question to The executive member , housing and adult services.
Please confirm how many homes from the RBK,s housing stock fall below the decent standard home criteria, and how dose this compare year on year over the pass four years,
The question was put to see if the governments target would be met, the answer shows that it would not be,
27% in 2003
26% in 2004
20% in 2005/6
20% in 2007
I take this to mean there are about 1000 homes that do not come up to a decent home standard.
As a supplementary question I then asked given that at the MCNC we were told that there were 11 property's that would cost £50.000 each to bring up to the standard, and given that we were also told that new front doors had been fitted to some property's at a cost of about £1200 each, would she ensure that costing of maintenance work is vigorously vetted.
I believe that property's that are so expensive to be put right, will be handed over to an housing association, the danger with that is the fine line the council will have to follow, if it is not to be accused of deliberately running down the stock in order to move it onto housing associations
Please confirm how many homes from the RBK,s housing stock fall below the decent standard home criteria, and how dose this compare year on year over the pass four years,
The question was put to see if the governments target would be met, the answer shows that it would not be,
27% in 2003
26% in 2004
20% in 2005/6
20% in 2007
I take this to mean there are about 1000 homes that do not come up to a decent home standard.
As a supplementary question I then asked given that at the MCNC we were told that there were 11 property's that would cost £50.000 each to bring up to the standard, and given that we were also told that new front doors had been fitted to some property's at a cost of about £1200 each, would she ensure that costing of maintenance work is vigorously vetted.
I believe that property's that are so expensive to be put right, will be handed over to an housing association, the danger with that is the fine line the council will have to follow, if it is not to be accused of deliberately running down the stock in order to move it onto housing associations
Saturday, 15 March 2008
Lies afoot
There is someone spreading rumours, that are completely untrue (me thinks dirty trick are afoot) it is said that Old Malden Library is to Close, The Chairman of Malden and Coombe , Cllr Patrick Codd as stated that as long as the Conservatives control the Committee this will not take place, unless the Lib/Dem executive over rule them.
No way will the Conservative allow it to be closed
Thursday, 21 February 2008
Save our Post office St James Ward
We are again the front runners in the campaine to save the local small post offices, the photo was taken on the day of the annoncement listing the closers, we will be out with our Petitions on Satuday, and every day we will be pushing for this silly idea to be overturnedThe Post Office's consultation opened on
Friday, 15 February 2008
Mayor’s aide avoids scrutiny
BORIS JOHNSON: JASPER SUSPENSION A COMPLETE COVER UP
Mayor’s aide avoids scrutiny Commenting today on the news that the Mayor’s chief advisor, Lee Jasper, has been suspended from City Hall, Conservative Candidate for Mayor, Boris Johnson said:
“This is an outrageous attempt to avoid scrutiny. It was only 12 hours ago that the Mayor informed us that he had full confidence in Mr Jasper. What has changed his mind?
“Mr Jasper has been suspended – presumably on full pay – until after the election, in the hope that the full facts will not come out.
“It is clear that the Mayor’s handling of City Hall is descending into sleaze, chaos, and now cover-up.
“Millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money has been wasted or trousered by cronies of the Mayor.
“And we now have the police called in to investigate the Mayor’s chief police adviser.
“It is time to clean up City Hall, and time London had a change from this tired, stale, incompetent and increasingly decadent regime.
“How can the Mayor possibly focus on crime, housing and transport when he is mired in maladministration?”
Friday, 1 February 2008
THATS HOW YOU DO IT.
It can be done: South Norfolk Council freezes council tax
South Norfolk Council joins Westminster and East Hampshire as the three local authorities in the country that are freezing council tax. Hammersmith & Fulham, as we reported at the end of last year, are in a league of their own with a second successive 3% reduction in their levy.
South Norfolk switched from LibDem to Tory control at last year's elections with twenty council seats won by the Conservatives. During 12 years in charge the LibDems had increased council tax by 285%.
Council Leader John Fuller issued the following statement:
"We approach running the Council by applying Conservative values of thrift & enterprise whilst making sure that the state is there to help those who cannot help themselves. We are a Council that has now got a grip on its projects and is putting resources into its priority areas, whilst freezing council tax. But that hasn’t meant cuts. Quite the reverse. We’ve improved services by spending more on recycling, tackling anti-social behaviour whilst helping the old and infirm remain in their homes with extra resources for aids-and-adaptation & expanding the handy-man service amongst many other improvements. We are not a business, but being more business-like has meant that we have been able to get a firmer grip on the public finances to providing better value for money for residents whilst delivering much more. And that’s what Local Government should be all about."
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