Chronicling the failures of a staggeringly incompetent unitary authority running three towns into the ground. Nothing to do with the council, obviously.
@Bmthgal Respectfully, it can’t really be shocking. These people were made candidates for their loyalty to the leadership. They have no connection to the area and there is no evidence they are for the local people’s best interests.
@Bmthgal Politicians with weird priorities haven’t even noticed that this absurd, deeply unpopular policy is already unravelling where it has been implemented, at tremendous expense.
https://t.co/ZnHg0XeMdi
@Bmthgal Politicians with weird priorities haven’t even noticed that this absurd, deeply unpopular policy is already unravelling where it has been implemented, at tremendous expense.
https://t.co/ZnHg0XeMdi
£2.4 million on something nobody asked for and nobody visits.
Meanwhile the Town centre is an absolute mess and Bournemouth beach looks run down and tired.
Austerity is a huge issue, but so is the appalling calibre of councillors & council officers.
Yes austerity, yes market failure, yes the tape worm of the outsourcing economy and privatisation, yes internet shopping - but we also simply have too many people in local government (elected and unelected) who are nowhere near up to the task.
Was in Bournemouth town centre today with dad. Had great time with baby in tow but my God, every time I go there are more empty shopfronts.
It’s objectively hard to screw up a beautiful, affluent Victorian town with beach & gardens, but the council has somehow done it.
@DanielRoyParkin@SaraArmstr64445 There is a lazy implication in the article that all private provision is ‘evil’ private equity vampires. It is not, and debt funded (mortgaged) SMEs are the cornerstone of provision for this kind of service. The answer is to get much better at commissioning services.
@DanielRoyParkin@SaraArmstr64445 Absolutely. It would either mean finding people who would do that role for nothing, or for paying them as professionals performing a role - which then makes it little different to private provision.
@DanielRoyParkin@SaraArmstr64445 There is nothing wrong with private provision provided it is offering good value for money. It is up to the purchaser of the service to seek value for money - typically with taxpayer’s funds.
@DanielRoyParkin@SaraArmstr64445 Quite possibly, providing you can find someone competent who will do it, however even if you can you will likely still run into problems with effective management and governance due to lack of focus & specialisation.
@DanielRoyParkin@SaraArmstr64445 The council couldn’t run a bath. Time and again councils attempt to bring care in-house and it is a disaster due to financial mismanagement and providing a poor service. In a panic they then start placing privately - and the cycle repeats.
More and more councils are considering 4-day weeks for staff ⚠️
That means a reduction in hours and no loss of pay 💰
Bad for residents and bad for taxpayers. Sign our petition and help us put a stop to this nonsense ✍️
https://t.co/bTs4dRj1Zj
BCP Council is in ‘one of the most precarious’ financial positions of local authorities in the UK, the chief executive has said.
https://t.co/2Q0WxsVaHz
https://t.co/YxBmNDLYtS
BCP authority "was living beyond its means with a £30m annual structural deficit".
They said the council was "technically insolvent",