Do you agree with super councils in Angela Rayner’s local government shake-up plans? On the face of it, what is there not to like? How many times have you seen local politicians on every media source, from social media to your local newspaper, falling out over issues that, on the face of it, are pointless?
That is the whole issue. Your local councillors fight for the area of their electorate representing the microcosm that makes up their community.
How often have you seen rural communities fight wind farms being built? In urban areas, it feels like it’s not an issue, but it might be if one was built nearby to you. Who would you ask to fight it? Your councillor? Your MP? Your Mayor?
This is the problem. Super councils will have less accountability as your district council will be abolished and absorbed by this larger model.
You may even get a Mayor who has combined powers over the police.
If you want to stop localised building and wind farms being built you might find that under Angela Rayner’s proposal, it will be easier to build on green belt and erect wind farms as the localised planning will be abolished.
Super councils will have less accountability than your district councils, writes David Morris
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With inflation creeping up and the economists hitting the panic button is it any wonder Rachael Reeves looks tired? Just look at those inflation figures.
The reason they have gone slightly down is that people are not spending in the service and retail sectors over Christmas. Given that this accounts for eight per cent of the economy, it’s signs of a classic slowdown on the way. I should know – in the 90s and 00s, I had a chain of service and retail outlets and saw just that under the last Labour Government.
With the vacuous policies of this inept government, how long will it be before the Chancellor has to call an emergency budget even though Starmer has ruled it out? That’s two-tier kier for you.
Remember the first Labour budget blamed a fictitious £20billion Tory black hole, only to create a £60million deficit a few weeks later? Only a few weeks ago, Reeves said she would not raise taxes again for the life of this Parliament. Good luck with that one. We’ve seen in just one week the Prime Minister hesitated when asked if he would sack her, and the anti-corruption minister resign over alleged corruption. Is this government going to fall apart like their mishandling of the economy?
Let’s see if the Chancellor is still in position after the spring and doubtless tax rises and further public financial trauma.
I wish President Trump well in his inauguration week. Hopefully, soon a solution to Ukraine will be formulated. Although I am critical of this Government, I would like to see the divides they have historically created be narrowed with the incoming administration and get back to grown-up politics but with David Lammy and Peter Mandelson in post and the Labour campaign against Trump, sending Parliamentary staffers over to the states to campaign against him, Ukraine seems a more likely prospect.
Let’s hope they didn’t go campaigning on Parliament’s time whilst being paid for by the taxpayer. That will be another crisis Labour will have to answer.
As readers of this column know, I had a hand in exposing, along with journalist David Rose, the motivations driving Milliband’s net zero policies. The latest release from the Government is that their preferred nuclear reactor model for the next generation is an Advanced Modular Reactor.
They have granted £170million for the development of such a device that currently does not exist, and this is to be working in 2030.
Presuming that they are still in government and that this reactor works, it will be at least 10 years before type approval. A good way to phase out nuclear under our noses and force more renewables on us as most reactors are now being decommissioned or on their end of life.
So much for great British Energy and lowering your bills. A few more broken election pledges to go on the bonfire of deceit to get elected to keep you not so warm. The trouble is, we need nuclear to keep the lights on.
When you have Sarah Champion MP and Andy Burnham wanting a national inquiry on grooming gangs you know Labour have their head in the sand by refusing one.
Kemi Badenoch is right to insist on an inquiry, and the cheek to say the Tories did nothing in government is plain untrue. There was a national task force set up by the Sunak administration on this issue.
What blunders and resignations are we to see next week? I’m starting to feel like Nostradamus after submitting this column the day after when I open the newspapers these days. Be warm in the knowledge you only have four and a half years to go…. If it lasts that long.
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