Birmingham bankrupt

[BrianW]

Just out of interest, how do they decide how much to give each council from central government? Surely it's not possible for them to decide based on who makes up the council? Or do they simply cut them all, and make councils raise their own money meaning that poorer areas will naturally have less money?

The simple answer is there is an incredibly complex formula that no one - and I mean no one - really understands. The consequence is that two local authorities of the same size can get completely different levels of government support. Joe Soap in the street, understandably, cannot comprehend this.

Of course, all authorities have had their funding cut, but some by far more than others. Ironically among the worst hit are those like Bury, where I live, which have a long tradition (going back many decades) of being parsimonious. This is because, way back, there was a base level of spending on which all this BS was based.

I would never rule out the possibility of some mismanagement and some waste. Show me an organisation of any complexity that can confidently assert it has neither. But in the scheme of things, we are talking petty cash. Just one issue is the vast amount of money that now needs to be spent on social care, due to an ageing population. There is no way around this unless we are going to start giving people 'the needle'.

 

[bluethrunthru]

The simple answer is there is an incredibly complex formula that no one - and I mean no one - really understands. The consequence is that two local authorities of the same size can get completely different levels of government support. Joe Soap in the street, understandably, cannot comprehend this.

Of course, all authorities have had their funding cut, but some by far more than others. Ironically among the worst hit are those like Bury, where I live, which have a long tradition (going back many decades) of being parsimonious. This is because, way back, there was a base level of spending on which all this BS was based.

I would never rule out the possibility of some mismanagement and some waste. Show me an organisation of any complexity that can confidently assert it has neither. But in the scheme of things, we are talking petty cash. Just one issue is the vast amount of money that now needs to be spent on social care, due to an ageing population. There is no way around this unless we are going to start giving people 'the needle'.

And of course in many cases we have learned that over the last 13 years of austerity the maintaining or increasing of funding depended on people electing a council or metro mayor of the "correct" political persuasion

 

[Vic]

Depends which Council you are on about. £18m isn't that bad for a medium sized MBC, or fairly typical. All have lost 50% of funding or so since 2010, so more like hundreds of millions.

Birmingham was about £30m PA short in its Medium Term Financial Strategy, which was nothing compared to its budget as the biggest Council, just the job evaluation case went badly. Every Council did their own job evaluation, and it seemed made up as it went along. However if you have 100s doing certain jobs rather than one person, the prospect of a challenge is far greater, so Birmingham's size helped lead to its downfall.

Some Councils have used the General Power of Competence (from the Localism Act 2011) to earn extra money and mitigate the cuts, but then you see a few bad examples like Thurrock which were ridiculous in the extreme. There are massive skills shortages now in technical areas.

The more or less final cuts were known since 2016 in the main with the shift away from the Revenue Support Grant to Business Rates retention, the real problem is demand increasing due to the ageing population, and that will go on for generations.

Our council is a third short of personnel in its internal audit section (plus shortage in finance generally).

Do we want to stop fraud (unlikely anyway), or recruit more planners to clear the backlog to meet government targets for dealing with applications, or more social workers to stop children being harmed, or fix potholes....

 

[Vic]

And of course in many cases we have learned that over the last 13 years of austerity the maintaining or increasing of funding depended on people electing a council or metro mayor of the "correct" political persuasion

And ministers "signing off" on "competitive" bids for money to each other's constituency.

(And the affluent boroughs can afford the officers' time to make better bids...)

 

[bluethrunthru]

And ministers "signing off" on "competitive" bids for money to each other's constituency.

(And the affluent boroughs can afford the officers' time to make better bids...)

Plus then the Chancellor now PM boasting to some members that he took funding away from troubled inner city areas - like Brum - and reallocated it to places like leafy Kent

 

[Scottyboi]

My council saying they might go under now due to HS2 cancellation, laughable.

Cheshire East council says it faces bankruptcy due to HS2 link cancellation

Local authority covering some of richest areas in England says it spent £11m preparing for rail line

amp.theguardian.com

https://moderngov.cheshireeast.gov.uk/ecminutes/documents/s112543/HS2%20Cancellation%20and%20Network%20North%20Implications%20for%20Cheshire%20East_.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1bUiGMCw84F9j3nSKr4HQA6Fpep7iWnr4ntY2XXapgywx6sJeoKaYAnu0

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

My council saying they might go under now due to HS2 cancellation, laughable.

Cheshire East council says it faces bankruptcy due to HS2 link cancellation

Local authority covering some of richest areas in England says it spent £11m preparing for rail line

amp.theguardian.com

https://moderngov.cheshireeast.gov.uk/ecminutes/documents/s112543/HS2%20Cancellation%20and%20Network%20North%20Implications%20for%20Cheshire%20East_.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1bUiGMCw84F9j3nSKr4HQA6Fpep7iWnr4ntY2XXapgywx6sJeoKaYAnu0

Speaking from fairly considerable experience, Cheshire East is one of the most inept local authorities in England, and certainly far more inept than Birmingham or Nottingham.

Fucking small time council.

 

[Scottyboi]

Speaking from fairly considerable experience, Cheshire East is one of the most inept local authorities in England, and certainly far more inept than Birmingham or Nottingham.

Fucking small time council.

Don't get me started, the fuckers for the second year in a row have decided not to grit a main road from Middlewich to Crewe, had over 7 cars including a coppers in a ditch so far this Autumn. Instead they hired big electronic signs telling you it wasn't gritted haha.

What actually happens if they go bankrupt?

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Don't get me started, the fuckers for the second year in a row have decided not to grit a main road from Middlewich to Crewe, had over 7 cars including a coppers in a ditch so far this Autumn. Instead they hired big electronic signs telling you it wasn't gritted haha.

What actually happens if they go bankrupt?

In reality, not a great deal, which is quite right. They’ve still got to serve the people of the Borough. Even the likes of you! :-)

Without that, society on a local level ceases to function.

The fundamental issue is a chronic lack of funding. Local government, in many ways, is far more relevant to most people’s lives than the machinations of Westminster.

 

[bluethrunthru]

Don't get me started, the fuckers for the second year in a row have decided not to grit a main road from Middlewich to Crewe, had over 7 cars including a coppers in a ditch so far this Autumn. Instead they hired big electronic signs telling you it wasn't gritted haha.

What actually happens if they go bankrupt?

Those useless signs get switched off lol

 

[Mr Kobayashi]

Speaking from fairly considerable experience, Cheshire East is one of the most inept local authorities in England, and certainly far more inept than Birmingham or Nottingham.

Fucking small time council.

Sounds like a ridiculous reason and figure to blame bankruptcy on.

And why wouldn't a labour run administration have a contingency against a Tory central government cancelling something.

Bizarre that they weren't charging for green bins, almost every other local authority does, because it isn't an essential service.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Sounds like a ridiculous figure reason and figure to blame bankruptcy on.

And why wouldn't a labour run administration have a contingency against a Tory central government cancelling something.

Bizarre that they weren't charging for green bins, almost every other local authority does, because it isn't an essential service.

It’s a funny one.

Some local authorities I deal with, in terms of my interaction, are far more efficient than any large company I deal with.

Not even close.

They should be charging for green bins though.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

It’s a funny one.

Some local authorities I deal with, in terms of my interaction, are far more efficient than any large company I deal with.

Not even close.

They should be charging for green bins though.

Why should councils charge for green bins?

Up here in Oldham council, our green bins are emptied weekly and the others every 3 weeks.

It works, because all the food wastage isnt left to rot and the other bins don’t get contaminated with rotting waste.

If we are serious about recycling, the councils should charge for grey bins before green ones.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Why should councils charge for green bins?

Up here in Oldham council, our green bins are emptied weekly and the others every 3 weeks.

It works, because all the food wastage isnt left to rot and the other bins don’t get contaminated with rotting waste.

If we are serious about recycling, the councils should charge for grey bins before green ones.

That’s fair comment mate.

I was speaking relatively, though.

I was thinking, sadly, in terms of PR, not what is right.

I’m sorry to say, but the public image of local government is hugely important.

And of course that service should be universally free.

 

[bluethrunthru]

Why should councils charge for green bins?

Up here in Oldham council, our green bins are emptied weekly and the others every 3 weeks.

It works, because all the food wastage isnt left to rot and the other bins don’t get contaminated with rotting waste.

If we are serious about recycling, the councils should charge for grey bins before green ones.

Up here Redcar and Cleveland Council are doing just that - £40 to have your green bins emptied. I am guessing the other bins will just fill up with garden waste. Also the free parking is Guisborough is going - £1.60 per hr £2 for 2 hrs whereas its been free in the 25 years I have known it just time limited to 2hrs ( you use one of those cardboard discs to show how long you have been there ) so that will be another empty High Street

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Up here Redcar and Cleveland Council are doing just that - £40 to have your green bins emptied. I am guessing the other bins will just fill up with garden waste. Also the free parking is Guisborough is going - £1.60 per hr £2 for 2 hrs whereas its been free in the 25 years I have known it just time limited to 2hrs ( you use one of those cardboard discs to show how long you have been there ) so that will be another empty High Street

That’s just silly to me. It’ll cause an eco hazard, There’ll be rats and foxes all over the show too.

Councils obviously need more funding, but the two examples you’ve given will lose them more than it makes them.

 

[bluethrunthru]

That’s just silly to me. It’ll cause an eco hazard, There’ll be rats and foxes all over the show too.

Councils obviously need more funding, but the two examples you’ve given will lose them more than it makes them.

I pick my daughter up from work in Boro at 6pm most nights. There are rats all over the Buxton St car park that live in the shrubbery around the edge. And its just getting worse. The bins are always overflowing and more and more there is glass from smashed car windows which I assume means robberies are up too ( may explain why the 12 EV charge points never seem in use ). Tonight I was sat waiting and across the car park I saw several rats "playing" around a car parked with its lights on. Then I saw an old lady get out so I drove over pdq and wound the window down and warned her to not leave the car there ....... warm engine would be a rats paradise - plenty of holes in the firewall to get in and then get under the back seat and eat the foam away to form a nest. Probably first you would know would be the smell of piss in the car and the failure of some functions when the fuckers eat the wiring. Country has gone to pot.

 

[Mr Kobayashi]

Why should councils charge for green bins?

Up here in Oldham council, our green bins are emptied weekly and the others every 3 weeks.

It works, because all the food wastage isnt left to rot and the other bins don’t get contaminated with rotting waste.

If we are serious about recycling, the councils should charge for grey bins before green ones.

I interpreted green bins as garden waste. As that's the standard colour for that down here.

Is not the case for Cheshire East?

Looks like it is.

Garden waste recycling scheme

Find out more about the garden waste scheme and why we charge to collect garden waste.

www.cheshireeast.gov.uk

Most garden waste is in green bins, You're confused by the fact you live in a Local Authority area that has decided to make the illogical and frankly insane decision to use green bins for food waste.

Brown caddy for food waste, green boxes for recyclables and blue bag for paper/cardboard.

Once a week.

Black bin once every three weeks.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

I interpreted green bins as garden waste. As that's the standard colour for that down here.

Is not the case for Cheshire East?

Looks like it is.

Garden waste recycling scheme

Find out more about the garden waste scheme and why we charge to collect garden waste.

www.cheshireeast.gov.uk

Most garden waste is in green bins, You're confused by the fact you live in a Local Authority area that has decided to make the illogical and frankly insane decision to use green bins for food waste.

Brown caddy for food waste, green boxes for recyclables and blue bag for paper/cardboard.

Once a week.

Black bin once every three weeks.

Our green bins are for food and garden waste and are emptied each week.

Our other bins are collected every 3 weeks, saving the council money with the lessened frequency.

No caddies, boxes etc, just 4 bins.

It works well.

I’d advocate it being rolled out across the country.

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

I pick my daughter up from work in Boro at 6pm most nights. There are rats all over the Buxton St car park that live in the shrubbery around the edge. And it’s just getting worse. The bins are always overflowing and more and more there is glass from smashed car windows which I assume means robberies are up too ( may explain why the 12 EV charge points never seem in use ). Tonight I was sat waiting and across the car park I saw several rats "playing" around a car parked with its lights on. Then I saw an old lady get out so I drove over pdq and wound the window down and warned her to not leave the car there ....... warm engine would be a rats paradise - plenty of holes in the firewall to get in and then get under the back seat and eat the foam away to form a nest. Probably first you would know would be the smell of piss in the car and the failure of some functions when the fuckers eat the wiring. Country has gone to pot.

Madness. The rat issue could be solved by regular food waste collection and less frequent other collections.