Archives for March 2011

Next month voters be deciding who runs their town hall and taking part in a referendum on whether should change the voting system in future general elections.

On 5 May, many people will also be deciding who serves on their local parish or town council.

In recent years some areas have seen a big increase in their parish council bills and some are now questioning why they're not subject to the same austerity measures as other public bodies.

Depending on who you speak to, Saxilby in Lincolnshire, could be described as a large village or a small town. But there's no doubting the parish council here has big ambitions - due largely to one man.

Since accountant Peter Odam took charge three years ago, spending on local projects has more than doubled. The parish council now has five full-time staff, including a sports and youth development officer. It also pays for grounds maintenance and is in negotiations about taking over the local library.

Saxilby Parish Council even runs a community centre bar - much to the annoyance of some in the local pub trade.

The current parish precept for a Band D household in the village is more than £100 for the coming year. That's the highest sum in the area.

Parish Council Chairman Peter Odam told me he had no regrets about raising the parish precept, saying he was only responding to feedback from local residents who were willing to pay more for better services.

But one Saxilby resident - who happens to be a former councillor - told me he believed parish spending should be capped in the same way local authorities are limited in the amount they can raise from taxpayers.

Many parish and town councils are trying to shake off their 'Vicar of Dibley' image and see themselves as fulfilling an important role providing services which have been lost elsewhere.

But that role comes at a price and householders across the country must decide whether it's a price worth paying.

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In recent times, we've tended to focus on the human cost of wars.

Now, there's an increasing focus on the financial price of the military operation in Libya.

Lincolnshire's air bases have played their part in a number of conflicts over the years and the current mission in Libya is no exception.

In the past few days Typhoon jets from RAF Coningsby have been policing the no-fly zone, from a base in southern Italy.

And Sentry surveillance aircraft from RAF Waddington have also been supporting the coalition operation.

But from the heart of so-called "RAF county" comes a dissenting voice.

Conservative councillor Chris Underwood-Frost is a former Grenadier Guard who is breaking rank with his own government.

He's questioned the estimated £2m a day cost of the Libya operation at a time when many public sector workers are losing their jobs.

Councillor Underwood points to a package of austerity measures announced recently by Lincolnshire County Council, which add up to £125m. He claims that equates to policing the no-fly zone for two months.

However, a sharply contrasting view comes from Samir Elmrghni - a PhD student at the University of Lincoln - who comes from the rebel-held city of Benghazi.

Samir tells this week's Politics Show in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire that British taxpayers should support the UN-backed mission as it has prevented the slaughter of civilians on a huge scale.

In the week of the budget, the Chancellor told MPs the conflict in Libya would cost tens of millions of pounds, not hundreds of millions.

But some are convinced that now is the wrong time to be reaching for the skies.

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Many people declared themselves Jedi knights in the last Census

Most households should by now have received a Census questionnaire, which will take a snapshot of life in the UK on 27 March.

Local authorities say the survey - which takes place every 10 years - provides them with vital information about how to deliver future services, such as school places and social care.

The first census took place more than 200 years ago. Back in 1801, it was just a simple head count. Now the form runs to 32 pages and asks questions about our ethnicity, religion and marital status.

It's worth noting that in the 2001 Census, around 390,000 people in England and Wales listed their religion as Jedi Knight.

For some, it's a case of too much information.

The No2ID campaign believes the 2011 Census is the work of the "stalker state" - describing it as "an official obsession with documenting our private lives for no good reason and to no good effect".

Campaigners are calling for tighter restrictions on how the information is used, with reports the statistical data could be shared across 27 EU countries.

But not everyone sees the Census as a gross invasion of privacy. I spoke to a pair of mature ladies on the streets of Beverley in East Yorkshire. I asked them how they felt about some of the questions...

"I don't mind answering at all," said one.

"Do you mind answering?" she asked her friend.

"No, I've got nothing to be ashamed about," she replied.

"Unfortunately."

With this year's Census coming with a price tag of just under £1/2bn, the government has already indicated future surveys could be scrapped due to the high cost.

But many public bodies will fight the move arguing there needs to be some way of tracking a changing population.

It's our big talking point on this week's Politics Show in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

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The Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has hit back following criticism made of him by a councillor from Grimsby.

Cliff Barber recently defected from the Liberal Democrats to Labour on North East Lincolnshire Council. He claims the Lib Dems have become too similar to the Conservatives and many voters can no longer distinguish between the two coalition parties.

Councillor Barber has served the Freshney ward in Grimsby since 2008. He won't face re-election until next year.

Nick Clegg told my colleague Len Tingle his party went into coalition with the Tories for "the right reasons" and the biggest task they face is "clearing up the economic mess left by Labour".

The Liberal Democrats gathered in Sheffield this weekend for the party's spring conference, amid tight security and a heavy police presence, with around 5000 protesters taking to the streets in a march through the city.

Many Liberal Democrats are nervous about their electoral prospects in May's local government elections.

Opinion polls reveal support for the Lib Dems has plummeted since last year's general election and the party's candidate in the recent Barnsley by-election came sixth with a lost deposit.

The Lib Dems face a tough fight to keep control of its Yorkshire councils such as Hull, Sheffield and York.

But many party workers say they aren't facing the bleak outlook that many commentators suggest, with voters willing to judge councillors on their local record, not - they claim - on what's happening in national government.

The Liberal Democrats' spring conference featured on the latest Politics Show in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.

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