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The Rotherham Independents exist to bring about real change in our local politics.
What do they want to change?
To answer that question, we need to consider what 40 years plus of absolute Labour rule in Rotherham has brought about:
1. Councillors so confident of re-election that they crow in public “Rotherham is Labour Territory”. So confident they become, arrogant and treat the electorate with disdain, see reports and letters in The Advertiser as to how they behave in public meetings and even the council chamber.
So confident of re-election they vote themselves onto the local government pension scheme. They take full advantage of increases recommended by their Independent Review Board.
2. Council Officers on exorbitant salaries, paid we are told to obtain the best, why then do they pay so much out in consultancy fees? Why do they, erroneously, compare themselves with people in similar positions in private companies? When did they last run a meaningful cost cutting exercise? When did they last have to fight off commercial competition in order to remain in business? If they are running the borough what are the councillors doing? In private companies the CEO and his board get paid for taking responsibility, long term decisions and establishing policy and middle management get paid for turning it into action and control day to day activities, middle managers on six figure salaries???
3. PFI schemes that will see the people of Rotherham having to find 3.5 million pounds in rent for the next 30 years before their Council Tax starts to pay for anything else.
4. A dead town centre not helped by the council for years insisting that parking should be paid for, in the face of repeated requests, from traders and the public, to provide free parking. Surprise, surprise, the council have recently discovered free parking.
5. A democratic system where every committee and council from the Borough to school governors has its Labour faithful.
6. Area Assemblies which cost a lot but seem to achieve little or nothing except to provide another vehicle for councillors to claim expenses.
7. A Council which without permission or consultation sets its self up as a banker lending money to private concerns in the borough namely Magna and the local Rugby club. Which begs several questions, on what terms was money loaned, has it been repaid and if not when (in the current climate these should be at the top of a list of jobs to do), these two were high profile how many others exist?
8. A Council and its highly prized executives who set up a partnership with BT and went into a blaze of publicity about what advantages it had brought naming management techniques which were taught 50 years ago in the council’s own college virtually across the road from the council offices.
9. Before the current round of cuts this caring council had savaged the services to elderly and the least advantaged in the Borough while maintaining their own remuneration.
10. The position of Mayor used to be an honourary position bestowed to recognise years of public service, irrespective of party affiliation, not in Rotherham, this is now the domain of the ruling Labour Party only.
Rotherham Independents want to change things like this, restore real democracy, insist its members embrace the idea of public service at the expense of personal advancement, provide value for money, consider Rotherham and its electorate before any party dogma.
1. Councillors so confident of re-election that they crow in public “Rotherham is Labour Territory”. So confident they become, arrogant and treat the electorate with disdain, see reports and letters in The Advertiser as to how they behave in public meetings and even the council chamber.
So confident of re-election they vote themselves onto the local government pension scheme. They take full advantage of increases recommended by their Independent Review Board.
2. Council Officers on exorbitant salaries, paid we are told to obtain the best, why then do they pay so much out in consultancy fees? Why do they, erroneously, compare themselves with people in similar positions in private companies? When did they last run a meaningful cost cutting exercise? When did they last have to fight off commercial competition in order to remain in business? If they are running the borough what are the councillors doing? In private companies the CEO and his board get paid for taking responsibility, long term decisions and establishing policy and middle management get paid for turning it into action and control day to day activities, middle managers on six figure salaries???
3. PFI schemes that will see the people of Rotherham having to find 3.5 million pounds in rent for the next 30 years before their Council Tax starts to pay for anything else.
4. A dead town centre not helped by the council for years insisting that parking should be paid for, in the face of repeated requests, from traders and the public, to provide free parking. Surprise, surprise, the council have recently discovered free parking.
5. A democratic system where every committee and council from the Borough to school governors has its Labour faithful.
6. Area Assemblies which cost a lot but seem to achieve little or nothing except to provide another vehicle for councillors to claim expenses.
7. A Council which without permission or consultation sets its self up as a banker lending money to private concerns in the borough namely Magna and the local Rugby club. Which begs several questions, on what terms was money loaned, has it been repaid and if not when (in the current climate these should be at the top of a list of jobs to do), these two were high profile how many others exist?
8. A Council and its highly prized executives who set up a partnership with BT and went into a blaze of publicity about what advantages it had brought naming management techniques which were taught 50 years ago in the council’s own college virtually across the road from the council offices.
9. Before the current round of cuts this caring council had savaged the services to elderly and the least advantaged in the Borough while maintaining their own remuneration.
10. The position of Mayor used to be an honourary position bestowed to recognise years of public service, irrespective of party affiliation, not in Rotherham, this is now the domain of the ruling Labour Party only.
Rotherham Independents want to change things like this, restore real democracy, insist its members embrace the idea of public service at the expense of personal advancement, provide value for money, consider Rotherham and its electorate before any party dogma.
Want to know more about us? Then please contact us using the links on this site.
Don Blow
Member Rotherham Independents
Be Part of the Future! Not the Past!
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