Speech to Full Council 15/02/07

Speech by Steve Kulka delivered to Redhill & Reigate Life / Surrey Mirror on Thu 15th Feb 2007

So it's recommended that the Council Tax increase to cover the proposed budget is to be 4.9%.

That's very interesting; because it's a matter of record that at the meeting of the full council on 12th October last year,

I had the impudence to point out to the council that a combination of the proposed spending on the planned Leisure enhancements plus a 4% increase to maintain services would probably push the increase in council tax well over 5% - which wouldn't be allowed by central government.

That was during the great Leisure debate. New swimming pools, shiny new leisure centres - you remember.

The Executive Member for Leisure and Healthy Living told me that we didn't have to worry about that, then.

But I couldn't help it. I've been worrying about it ever since.

I kept thinking, if they needed extra cash to upgrade all the leisure facilities,

and they couldn't ask for more than the government would allow

and they weren't going to cut services, - (which they are)

they must be getting the money from somewhere.

So I made enquiries.

Sometimes, housing developers are obliged to build a proportion of a new development as affordable housing.

Sometimes the council allows them to get out of building affordable housing on the shiny new prestigious development and instead they can pay large amounts of section 106 money into a pot to build these affordable houses - supposedly in a more appropriate neighbourhood.

In the mean time, these not insubstantial sums sit in a council, high interest account, waiting for the opportunity.

and when the opportunity comes, it's the original S106 amount that gets spent.

What happens to the interest, you may ask.

Well I asked.

It goes toward keeping Council tax down, I was told.

The Reigate & Banstead residents that need affordable housing include 'key workers' such as teachers, nurses and emergency service workers.

Doesn't it seem unfair that the key workers that we depend on, who are typically on the lowest wages, appear to be subsidising the council tax bill for the rest of us.

Getting on for 20 years ago, some members here may remember the huge shock when it was discovered the Tory council had to admit that they had loaded council house rents by 50 pence per week to subsidise the rates.

Things don't change much.

Part of the problem is that the council has difficulty communicating this sort of thing to our residents.

It's all in the spin.

I was present at a recent meeting of the Executive where the recommended increase of 5% was changed to 4.9%, because they said they didn't want residents thinking they were going for the maximum that government would allow.

And talking of affordable Housing, at the same meeting, the executive needed to propose new voting members to the Raven Housing Trust Board.

It was decided that ex Councillor Mr. Stuart Gosling should be removed, because he no longer reports to the Council, even though he has done Stirling work and has attended all the meetings - It was decided that he should be replaced by ex Tory Councillor Mrs Maureen Gates who also doesn't report to the council.

To end on a positive note though.

Last year during discussions about the Reigate Priory upgrade, it came to light that the water in the childrens play area was going to run away to waste.

Liberal Democrats pointed out that in the summer when the children most needed it, it stood a good chance of being turned off, unless it was treated and recycled. It now will be.

The Lib Dems also suggested that the new pavilion should set a good example and be energy efficient.

It will now be heated using a ground source heat pump.

Both of these will save money for the council and be good for the environment.