David Miliband: Say and Do

Now David Miliband, (The Boy Dave (M)) is the one who has been running around insisting that we need more localism. Indeed, we need "double devolution" in order that power resides in the people. That’s what he says, anyway.

This is what he does:

Local authorities will be allowed to "club together"
to form a rubbish collection quango which will be responsible for
whatever aspect of waste disposal council chiefs choose, Defra said.

Under
the present system, householders can complain directly to the council
responsible if they are unhappy with the frequency or quality of
collection. Ultimately, they can choose to complain at the ballot box.

But once the so-called Joint Waste Authorities are
created, local authorities would become less answerable to voters as
waste disposal will become the responsibility of quangos.

The
new powers are included in the Local Government Bill going through
Parliament and David Miliband, the Environment Secretary, is behind
them.

So the only actual service which local councils provide to the working age childless in return for their £1,000 a year is to be removed from council control to an unelected and thus unaccountable bureaucracy.

Well done Davey lad, that’s really doing as you say, isn’t it?

3 responses

  1. If people don’t like the idea of a JWA they can still vote their councillors out at the next election, can’t they?

  2. “Joint Waste Authorities”: would those be like regional police forces?
    Best regards

  3. I quite like street lamps, buses and trains, firefighters [not in *that* way], and planning enforcement banning people from building a glue factory outside my bedroom window – all despite having a job and no sprogs.
    But irrespective of your views on the merits of local councils, the article is, err, rubbish.
    At the moment, waste disposal is tendered out by local councils to private organisations such as Accord and Veolia. You can complain to your local council, but unless the service is flagrantly in breach of contract then there’s no comback until renewal time. At renewal time, councils will be able to respecify contracts, change service specifications, and kick out firms who are actively useless.
    Under the new rules (long in place for councils within Greater Manchester, presumably inherited when the county council was abolished), waste disposal will be tendered out by a group of local councils to private organisations such as Accord and Veolia. You will be able to complain to your local council, but unless the service is flagrantly in breach of contract then there’s no comback until renewal time. At renewal time, councils will be able to respecify contracts, change service specifications, and kick out firms who are actively useless.
    If it saves a few quid (possible, although not certain), what’s not to like?

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