Council chief brags about cuts

Chief executive officer of York council brags about cuts

On Thursday 28th February the City of York council set its new budget for the years 2013-15 – the council being in the control of the Labour Party group and self-defined Kinnockite James Alexander.

This budget has set out a further £22 million worth of cuts to local services and is the third successive cuts budget in as many years, in fact the council chief executive officer, Kersten England, was even bragging in the press release: “By 2015 we will have delivered savings of £62 million, over a period of four years – 30% of our budget”.

The Socialist Party, York Stop the Cuts and York Trades Council were present at the lobby outside the council offices.

Socialist Party members were presenting our ideas for fighting the cuts, calling for a needs-based budget and seeking to unite the local anti-cuts opposition to defeat austerity.

We don’t accept the argument advanced by councillors and some who claim to be on the left that ‘it is better the bureaucrat that you know, than the one you don’t’.

We presented a petition to the council, signed by over 1,000 local residents, calling on the council to restore EMA.

Because of the scale of the petition the council was constitutionally obliged to reply to it. Of course the reply from all four main parties on the council was tawdry and predictable.

Both Labour and the Greens went through meaningless platitudes expressing their support for EMA, and hence how it was a truly ‘tough decision’ that they were left with ‘no choice’ but to vote against restoring it.

The Socialist Party will continue to campaign in the community and use this campaigning to highlight the hypocrisy of all cutting councillors.

Martin Readle, York Socialist Party.

See also:

York councillors reject restoration of EMA and make further cuts