First of all I am sorry to find myself having to set the record straight. Two weeks ago this paper misquoted me as saying that 70 youth workers were set to lose their jobs. The accurate quote is that up to 70 posts across Children’s Services will be lost. Pamela Welsh, the reporter that wrote the article, stated publicly on Twitter on the 5th February that this was her mistake and she has since made numerous public statements and apologies. It was an honest mistake and I am happy to let the matter rest. However, Councillor Merry appears to have chosen to ignore this and has restated the error in his column. If it was his intention to try and score political points, it has backfired. I am also very concerned that the editors of this publication would allow this misquote to be perpetuated knowing full well the continued embarrassment that it causes to all concerned.
Unfortunately, Councillor Merry’s misjudgements don’t stop there. Salford Council’s 0% council tax rise will be funded by hidden increases in community charges that will hurt the pockets of families and elderly residents. To fund their commitment Salford City Council plan to increase the price of Meals on Wheels for elderly residents, increase the cost of funeral administration and bereavement services, increase library costs and increase costs for schools’ extra-curricular music lessons and for schools’ training and administration. Finally, the 0% rise excludes the precepts for the police and fire authority, which will have to increase in order to maintain services. The reality is that despite the Council’s promise not to increase your council tax, it will go up. Salford City Council has made a promise that it can’t keep!
The Salford Liberal Democrats are proposing a budget that will see no hidden increases and will minimise the impact of present economic difficulties on frontline services. We propose cutting unnecessary allowances for councillors, as well as ensuring that loss-making events like the ice-rink and proms in the park make a profit. We would also cut spending on the hugely expensive Life in Salford magazine.
Councillor Merry would have you believe that living in Salford is good value for money and that the average council tax in Salford is low compared with other English authorities. However, my Lib Dem colleagues and I have been checking his claims. According to the data on the Department for Communities and Local Government website, when you calculate the average council tax of each authority in England, Salford ranks among the highest! So which is it? I for one do not trust Councillor Merry’s statistical jiggery-pokery and I know I’m not alone!
At the end of the day it is the people of Salford that matter and, over the last few weeks, I and my fellow Lib Dems and Lib Dem Councillors have been out meeting real people on Salford and Eccles Precincts. We expected an anti-Labour response but the amount of people who have said they will not be voting Labour has still been a real shock. Last weekend, on Eccles precinct, local residents also raised concerns about the publicity that this paper has been giving Hazel Blears recently. On Salford precinct, Councillor Merry came in for a lot of stick from residents, some of whom even singled out particular Labour councillors as ‘useless’. This shows that the electorate are not just sick of Hazel Blears but also sick of the Labour council and its poor leadership. My message to anyone that wants rid of Hazel Blears and failed Labour councillors is simple: Only the Lib Dems can beat Labour in Salford.
Finally, congratulations to the person who threw the BNP leaflet in the bin (letter 11th Feb). Well done! Where the BNP have been elected they have been proven incompetent and they spread dishonesty and create divided communities. Residents deserve hard working and honest councillors who work for all rather than for some.