Saturday, 06 March, 2010
 | Local accountability |
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Given the growing concerns about just how Burnley Council’s Liberal Democrat administration spends council taxpayers’ money it is timely that Conservatives have confirmed our plans to ensure value for money on town hall spending. Conservatives believe in giving more power, discretion and autonomy to local councils – of whatever party. But that greater power has to be backed up by greater accountibility to council taxpayers.
So, under a Conservative Government Burnley Council would be required to allow Burnley people to see exactly how it is spending public money. Councils will be required to publish regularly information about their spending available online. They would list all items of external expenditure on goods and services above £500 – and also publish contracts and tender documents in full, to enable more small businesses to win council procurement contracts.
While Councils are already required to publish the allowances and expenses of every named councillor each year there is no central register to compare allowances from council to council. So, as part of our policy to scrap Comprehensive Area Assessments, town halls would instead publish key information online in an open and standardised format. This will allow the public to easily compare councillor expenses across the country.
Labour recently pledged to amend council audit regulations to require town halls to publish the pay packages of local authority staff earning over £150,000 by name, in £5,000 bands; and publishing the number of staff earning £50,000 or more. A Conservative Government will go further by requiring local authorities to publish more public information on the remuneration of senior town hall staff, including pensions, perks and severance packages. Conservatives believe greater public scrutiny will serve to provide downward pressure on excessive and unjustified wage inflation.
A Conservative Government will work with councils to offer better quality public services and more value for money. We know that by identifying waste and bureaucracy, we can free up resources that can be used to improve services or lower taxes, depending on what voters in Burnley and Padiham decide.
Richard
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