From the Canal to Sevenways

Category: Trafford Council

  • Weekly Update 24th – 30th November 2018

    Weekly Update 24th – 30th November 2018

    Saturday

    Two sessions of campaigning in Davyhulme.

    Issues raised included George Carnall, leaf clearing, potholes and road resurfacing. My sense is that voters are willing to give Trafford Labour more time and appreciate that only Labour is willing to listen.

    Sunday

    Growing ever more frustrated with parliament and the inability of the parties there to deal with Brexit. The nonsense coming out of mouths on the various front-benches is shocking. Those who pronounce proudly and authoritatively that there’s no parliamentary majority for ‘no deal’ miss the point that ‘no deal’ is not a thing to support, it’s the absence of a thing to support.  Brexit will not deliver the Transitional Program beloved of 2nd rate university staff-rooms. If mainstream politics is collapsing in on itself,  we all suffer.

    Monday

    Council Executive, plus various briefings; a really worthwhile day. Looking forward to the arrival of Sara Todd as Trafford’s new chief executive. Hearing only good things about Sara. I believe she has a background in planning but respected across the board.

    Tuesday

    Debate over Trafford’s civic quarter masterplan continues. Some are missing the point that masterplans are roughly 80% about what should not be built in a place and about 20% in communicating a vision about how what can be built might link together. There are some who argue that that the civic quarter masterplan should be scrapped; perversely because they don’t want any development.

    Wednesday

    Full council meeting: big item is the Breaking Point motion. The £1.6bn cut to next year’s local government funding must be reversed. Whilst it’s a Labour campaign, only Trafford’s Tories failed to support the motion. The cuts to local government are an act of safe harm. No area of public spending is more important for the general welfare of the country. More cuts to street cleansing, social care, support for families, bins and we’re seeing crime rise, filthy streets, grids that no longer drain. The vitality of the country is fundamentally weakened by this ill-conceived policy. Time to reverse the harm they’ve imposed on us.

    Thursday

    Caught up on the outcomes of the previous evening’s public meeting in Old Trafford regarding the private car park on Seymour Grove. Lots of constituents have received tickets for legitimate parking to shop at Iceland and Superdrug and then followed up with very aggressive fines.

    The two people I’ve been supporting through this had attended and it was good to hear it had gone well.

    Library volunteering in the afternoon.

    Friday

    No major meetings caught up with a few things.

  • Should we care about insects?

    Should we care about insects?

    It hardly made the news. Relegated to sixth item on Thursday’s 6am BBC news, not even mentioned on the preceding ‘Farming Today’. If it wasn’t for the Guardian putting it onto their frontpage, maybe the BBC wouldn’t have mentioned it at all.

    guardian frontpage

    The news that German Scientists had revealed a 75% reduction in flying insects since the 80s was greeted essentially with a shrug.

    I’m no scientist but I do know we need insects, that a 75% reduction is beyond serious; and that the most likely culprit is man. It therefore follows that we need to do something about it, …but probably won’t.

    The EU has been struggling to comprehensively ban neonicotinoids, against an alliance of Tory MEPs, German industrial giants – Bayer (largest manufacturers of neonicotinoids) and the industrial farming lobby.

    I’m proud that the Labour Party manifesto committed a future Labour Government to ban these filthy neonicotinoids. We need to go further though.

    Buglife, the conservation organisation committed to invertebrates, put together its own manifesto in 2014 and it still looks credible today.

    We do need a comprehensive strategy though and quick. I think the direction will have to come from the EU. The UK’s Tory Government is in a state of collective psychosis and the US has Donald Trump. Insects really matter.

  • Understanding University Academy 92 – The Campus

    Understanding University Academy 92 – The Campus

    Gary Neville’s University plans at core of a revised Stretford Masterplan

    What are the plans, what are the risks?

    The University itself

    Big launch, lots of photo-opportunities, noisy videos, but what do we really know of the plans?

    ..and what is the UA92 vision actually about?

    Universities have traditionally placed academic learning at the core of the curriculum, supported by character development for the world of work. By comparison, UA92 will deliver a curriculum with employability and character development at the core wrapped around by academic development.

    There’s lots of talk of character and striving and success and goals, but beyond buzz words we still know very little about the university itself. We know that Lancaster University (University of the Year 2017!) are backing the project and they intend to give more information in the new year about the curriculum.

    There could be up to 7000 students enrolled ultimately at the campus, but there’s also a lot of talk of paid placements. It would be helpful to understand the nature of these placements, whether they’re local placements or whether they’re global; and the interaction with the University whilst on those placements.

    Not really a planning consideration, but in terms of understanding the economic regeneration and sustainability of all this, I want to get a better idea of how many students will need to be housed locally, where they’re from, and what their spending power is.

    There will be opportunities for local businesses, for voluntary sector, for existing educational institutions. I really want to learn more.

    The Talbot Road Campus itself

    Trafford Council have already purchased the site. Currently, it’s the Kelloggs HQ but Kelloggs are moving to Media City. It’s a big and valuable site. My understanding is that Trafford will be the landlords and are already committed to refurbishing the building. There’ll be a new sports centre/swimming pool built on site (top right of map) to replace Stretford Sports Centre.

    This sports centre probably deserves its own article; users are understandably worried about provision at the new centre, will it be more difficult to book a court? Will the university be making block bookings and residents picking up what’s left? It is some reassurance that Trafford Leisure will be operating the centre, but I want to be certain that this will meet the community’s need. I’m trying to get a consultation event organised at Stretford Sports Centre dedicated to the transfer of sports provision to the new site.

    My Questions

    • What is Trafford Council’s exposure to risk on the refurbishment of the Kelloggs building?
    • As landlord of the Kelloggs building, what is our exposure to ongoing financial committment?
    • What happens if the University fails? Implications for Trafford Council and Leisure Trust?
    • How does the proposed hotel and 150 apartments proposed for the UA92 campus site fit in with the university – are these serious proposals or just something marking time until further announcements
    • The new Stretford Masterplan identifies 84 Talbot Road for development but no other sites beyond the K site, why is this when there seems a number of sites further down Talbot Road ripe for development including the old bowling green etc?
    • What guarantees have residents that the new sport centre will be able to cope with the increased demand generated by improved and new facilities as well as the increased student population on site?
    • How will the Leisure Trust consult users about what needs to go in the new centre?
    • University Campuses are usually 24hr operations – to what extent will this apply at UA92?
    • What arrangements are being considered for cycling and walking routes from Stretford to the campus?
    • Gorse Hill already suffers notable neglect from some private landlords, will you now introduce a landlord licensing scheme, such as has proved so successful in Newham and other boroughs?
    • What’s the intention for the current sports centre site?
  • Everything is Fine at Trafford Council!

    Everything is Fine at Trafford Council!

    Things are getting really bad in Trafford!

    The honest assessment as I see it is that Trafford is almost at breaking point.

    You've seen the figures that show delayed discharges from hospital put Trafford in the bottom two of the league table for the whole country. Those are real figures, not some tame consultancy's award.

    Those figures are more indicative of how Trafford is performing than any amount of corporate propaganda. And the effect is shortened lives as we all know.

    This hasn't happened overnight. It's been the product of the coalition's long term economic plan sacrificing local services and Labour's been shouting it for years.

    Trafford's problem is that it started the cuts from such a low base. And having Tories in control has meant a culture of denial. Just keep telling everyone that all is well and they won't notice.

    But senior officers do know and reputationally, the signs are there that working at Trafford is no longer the plum job it once was. All the corporate directors from even five years ago have either left, leaving or have tried to leave. Trafford no longer seems to be attracting the best from outside and increasingly promotes from within, which can work, but obviously lessens its ability to refresh.

    Things are dire. The visible signs are there for all to see It would be easy to put the blame on our private sector 'partner', Amey for the state of our roads and parks. Indeed Amey Plc are a symptom of that sort of global private equity me, me, me, greed that's beset us, but Sean Anstee's Tories have to take the real blame.

    The Tories have relied upon throwing a few crumbs out to wards they need to keep voting Tory. And they paint an implied, and often explicit threat that because Labour says it will try to be fair in its policies, that will somehow be worse for Tory voters.

    It's a proven electoral strategy and it doesn't cost them very much in 'crumbs'. When you look at Davyhulme, Flixton, Sale, you see it really is crumbs. The cake goes to Hale and Bowdon.

    It's almost satire that Hale is having millions spent on its new library, Where's the business case in social value terms, especially given the proximity to Altrincham? – (also getting a new library)

    I'm angry that my town, my neighbourhood is getting such a raw deal. I'm frustrated that that the Flixton and Davyhulme's don't demand the same 'cake' that goes to Hale and Bowdon. Why don't they ask where are Flixton and Davyhulme's libraries? Will there ever be a breaking point?

    I look across at a Tory Party in total denial as to Trafford's plight.

    Comfortably Numb in their indolence.

  • Trafford Council Budget Meeting

    Trafford Council Budget Meeting

    Trafford Council’s Budget Meeting 2016
    The most important council meeting of the year. It’s by far the most unpleasant meeting of the year too.

    I don’t need a reminder that we in Labour failed to convince voters we should gain control in Trafford last year, but fail we did; and this, the consequence, a Tory council with free reign to pull whatever its remaining spending choices towards Altrincham and Hale.

    Power within the Conservative group is concentrated with the leader, deputy-leader, finance and most of the influence coming from the Hale – Bowdon – Altrincham axis. Hale gets its brand new library whilst Davyhulme loses theirs. Some Conservatives are given the keys to spending, whilst others make do with a Christmas card from Cameron.

    That’s the Conservative way.

    And the Conservative way is replicated all the way to the top. When it came to the Government helping out councils, it chose a method that benefitted councils who’d suffered the least in the years of austerity. Surrey gets the largest single amount, at £24m, followed by Hampshire (£19m), Hertfordshire (£16m), Essex (£14m), West Sussex (£12m), Kent (£11m), Buckinghamshire (£9m) and Oxfordshire (£9m). You couldn’t make it up. A scheme that rewarded councils for the most billionaire’s mansions within their domains wouldn’t be that dissimilar a list.

    Trafford gets the relatively pitiful transitional £0.5m for 2016/17, but it’s still more than any other council in Greater Manchester apart from Stockport. If it feels like Trafford is being patronised by Tories from the Shires, blessed with more moats than foodbanks, it should feel that way.

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    So the Tories have ripped us over again. We’re left with a budget gap of £22.6m. They’re imposing the Osborne Tax to raise £1.6m. They’re not increasing base council tax even if the Government expects them to. Much of the savings will be invisible to many but grim and confusing to a few. We’ve seen an illustration of this with the home to school transport for young people with special needs attending Brentwood school. The parents and children were protesting last night, as was famous guitarist, Johnny Marr. You can’t make these sorts of savings without hurting people or communities. I think people get this now.

    We in the Labour Party have a responsibility to take the battle to the Tories. We need to be winning seats.

  • You pays your money and takes your choice

    A bit of honesty is never a bad thing, but this is long overdue. Trafford is proposing to make crude cuts to services from next April. Some of these changes will affect many people in terms of the cleanliness of our towns, others will affect fewer residents but could destroy lives. Most of the changes are likely to place a burden on future generations in clearing up the mess.

    Whose fault is this when we’ve known for four years it’s been coming to Trafford? Ok, last year’s failure to track and predict £7m of spending has meant the tipping point has arrived a year earlier than the Council expected, but for years we’ve been steadfastly on course for a crisis in service delivery. And we’re now at a place where services that most of us take for granted are being withdrawn. And look at what we’re losing:

    • Libraries (saving £0.7m)
    • SureStart & Youth Centres (saving £3.3m)
    • School Crossing Patrols (saving £0.1m)

    (all of which the Tories had arrogantly crowed they were protecting!)

    And we’re selling off the street cleaning, waste collections, parks maintenance to a corporate asset stripper, who no doubt will fleece us in the long run.

    At least the Tory narrative is no longer pretending it’s a good thing. But they’re still protesting that these cuts have been forced upon us, that there was nothing we could have done to avoid them. Nevertheless, I think we’re all deceiving ourselves if we believe this is all down to Government Cuts. We can’t put all the blame on Government when Trafford has made having such a low council tax its Holy Grail.

    If we’d aimed for the middle range rather than having the lowest council tax in Greater Manchester, most of the precious services in our communities could have been retained. If we had levels matching Stockport or Oldham’s we might just have built some council houses too.

    The point of this is not to necessarily say we should have a higher council tax, but as citizens we can’t just keep pretending there are not services sacrificed on the alter of our low council tax bill. And we can’t pretend any Government of any persuasion will bail us out when we’re so out of kilter. We have made a choice. It’s not for me to say whether it was the right choice but we have to be honest about its consequences.

    How much would be raised if Trafford matched its Band D Council Tax to other GM Authorities?

    Council Tax