I have, in the past, been critical of my local Conservatives and their approach towards budget cutting. In their attempt to cut the County Council's budget, they have explored new and interesting ways to transfer costs to lower tiers of government, rather than actually cut spending. And it looks as though their colleagues on Mid Suffolk District Council have done the same.
I have in my possession a copy of a letter from Mid Suffolk's Environmental Services Officer, informing us that, from 1 April 2012, we will have to make a contribution towards the costs of emptying dog and litter bins. It reads;
"With the reduction in government funding we have had to review all aspects of our service. In order to maintain a high quality reliable service a charge needs to be made to continue to provide, and possibly expand, this important function... The initial charge agreed by Environmental Policy Panel is £10 per litter bin per year and £15 per dog bin per year..."
I freely admit that it is an important service, so important that we pay for the bins ourselves. However, the administrative cost in billing Creeting St Peter Parish Council £55 per annum probably eats up much of the income and, in any event, there is no indication as to what effect this will have on the overall spend on emptying dog and litter bins. We have no choice but to find the money (more than 1% of our annual precept), so we will. I may have to put up the precept to do so, not something that fills me with joy, but I will do if it is necessary to do so.
However, I do find myself wondering if, in order to balance the budget, some of my fellow parish councillors might decide to reduce the number of dog and litter bins, rather than have to pay for them to be emptied...
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