LETTERS
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From: Mark Sanderson Subject: Council cuts
Don’t let Mr Pickles get way with the idea that it is just Labour-run councils condemning the cuts. Derbyshire Dales District Council should be a flagship authority for the Conservatives; it has a strong Conservative majority, rated ex- cellent by the Audit Commission and voted the second safest place to live in the UK, after the Scilly Isles. This is an extract from the press release regarding our budget: “A swingeing 16.2% cut in Government grant in 2011/12 – the biggest percentage cut faced by any council in England – means Derbyshire Dales District Council has had to find savings through a combination of measures, includ- ing reducing employee costs and starting a comprehensive review of spending across all its serv- ices.”
Time to think again Mr Pickles.
From: David Leach, director, Projekthaus 2504 Subject: Defence procurement
I don’t think anyone would ar- gue that there are not problems with defence procurement. But perhaps it is worth remember- ing the good and important work that has been done over recent years. Under the banner of the Acquisition Operating Framework a number of initiatives have been launched which are already prov- ing their worth in terms of getting a grip on defence procurement projects.
As just two examples, the in- troduction of Earned Value Management, mandatory on ma- jor defence contracts since 2006, and the innovative use of Project Risk Management are both al- ready showing benefits. Both of these techniques not only allow the MoD to gain greater insight into the progress of their projects, they also allow them to establish a genuine partnership between
Eric Pickles. Image © Paul Clarke themselves and their contractors.
It should be remembered that many of the troubled projects that are currently in the spotlight predate these initiatives and that, due to the scale of the projects concerned, it could be some years before the true benefits are apparent. However, if experi- ence in the US is any indication, where the use of Earned Value Management has now been ex- tended from defence projects to all major Government procure- ment projects, it may well be that the MoD is paving the way for procurement initiatives that may ultimately be applied across the public sector.
We may argue about the pace of change in defence procure- ment, but make no mistake, it has changed and is changing, and changing for the better.
From: Maggie Noonan Subject: Disability benefits shake-up
I am totally in favour of this ap- proach. For a long time some people have been able to live off of the system and not make any effort to get a job and return to work when many of them are malingering. We have developed a benefits culture in this country and it is a drain on the country’s finances.
I have seen several people, through my job as an adviser, who are more than able to work but claiming ICB; they can afford to go on holidays regularly as well as live comfortably, afford- ing the type of things that most of
us who do work can’t. These are the people to target. They have been able to take free courses, etc, with no intention of using the skills they have learnt, often tak- ing the course places of others who do want to learn to get back into employment.
I am concerned though for the genuine people who are genuine- ly unable to work through illness; it needs to be handled compas- sionately, ensuring that medical advice is considered in all cases.
From: Carolyn Potter Subject: Civil service pensions
I am a local government em- ployee with a district council, and it always annoys me that when there is talk about local govern- ment pensions, we all get tarred with the same brush. Local gov- ernment pension monies are paid into a fund managed by the coun- ty council. Why can’t civil serv- ants have a similar scheme, rather than the money coming straight from central Government?
From: George Robertson Subject: Eric Pickles’ attacks on councils
While some mutual mud-sling- ing was inevitable and no doubt some councils were slower than others to take a ‘radical’ look at the need for change in the current economic climate, the approach of Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has been disgraceful.
The relentless playing to the gal- lery, supported by the usual press barracking, has done untold damage to the reputation and
future of local government, the consequences of which will only become apparent with the pas- sage of time. The ‘big society’ agenda needs input from an ac- tive and respected local govern- ment manned by members and officers committed to their local community. God knows why any- one would wish to be associated with local government after this endless tirade of propaganda. Even bankers get better press but then again maybe that’s what it’s all about. Very sad.
From: Councillor Roger Taylor (Con), Calderdale MBC Subject: Anti-cuts march
While everyone has a right to pro- test they also have to understand what the private sector has had to deal with some two to three years before the public sector had to. Even if Miliband were in No.10 I am certain there would have been cuts of a similar scale. My main concern is that as the cur- rent Government is a coalition, the road to economic recovery has been slowed by sweeteners for some sections of the employ- ment profile.
When Gordon Brown ‘raided’ the private pension funds of their tax- free investment scheme he, in essence, killed off many private sector pensions. The number of final-salary schemes in the private sector can be counted on one hand. The public sector looked on in smug knowledge that their pensions were not only index- linked but underwritten by the taxpayer! What a nerve to now complain because it is catch-up (I prefer pay-back) time.
If we follow how both Canada and Sweden reduced the usual legacy of socialist style govern- ments to reduce their respective deficits they ‘front-loaded’ their cuts to government spending and recovered in a few years and this is precisely what the UK should be doing.
public sector executive Mar/Apr 11 | 13
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