Another day and another article in the Press and Journal about the depressing financial problems at Highland Council. Nairn member Michael Green is mentioned in dispatches:
"Nairn member Michael Green said: “Seven years on, we must increase it. If the Scottish Government cares about maintaining services, this is the most obvious way.” "
More in the article by Iain Ramage here.
The majority of us in Scotland didn't vote for our current Tory government, indeed the SNP hold 56 out of 59 seats
ReplyDeleteTherefore the majority supported an anti austerity policy
Raising Council Tax is not that and therefore undemocratic
Perhaps Michael Green also told the P&J the same that he told River CC on Weds night that if he put up the council tax they would be penalized by the Scottish government and lose it so there was no point.
ReplyDeleteChange of direction from Councillor Green?
I know it wrong.but in the bigger picture if it would help surely a 2% increase would be acceptable.but only as long as they all take a paycut to help the financial situation highland council find themselves in
ReplyDeleteAccording to Councillor Stephen Fuller Simon the Highland Council receives 3.5 million subsidy from the Scottish Government to make up for not putting the tax up. If it went up that would be lost. Stephen Fuller is suggesting on twitter that even a 10% rise might not be enough in that circumstance.
ReplyDeletehttps://twitter.com/FullerNairnSNP/status/612301129062436864
I'm a little confused.... surely it is the anti-austerity party, the SNP Scottish government who have been underfunding our councils for years? HC (and I'm sure this situation is country wide) is in serious trouble and facing collapse because of this. Isnt it a complete hypocrisy for the SNP to starve us of vital services and at the same time blame Westminster for austerity? And the underfunding of NHS Highland to the tune of millions has a nasty stench about it - all emanating from our SNP government.
ReplyDeleteWe cannot expect services unless we pay for them. The Government in Westminster is cutting Scottish funding, thus the amount to local councils will fall and services will be slashed.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet the Conservative-Labour-SNP-Liberal love in over Foreign Aid continues with a staggering £12.4 billion this year and possibly next year over £13 billion based on economic figures over 2015.
It is time to slash the Foreign Aid bill by three quarters and use the £9 billion saved on British poor.
Next time Nairnites can`t get the council to do something because the council are making savage cut backs they will be reassured that £12.4 billion is posted off abroad and such has been going on for 50 years
Anon re foreign aid. Left out the individual figures and comment you had on aid to specific countries. A quick google doesn't show up much. Do you have a source to link to?
ReplyDelete@Anon 1:06 PM
ReplyDeleteForeign Aid is often a good investment for UK companies as they get contracts on the back of it. Think of the many wars we've been involved in, Foreign Aid is used to rebuild countries that we've flattened through bombing and British firms often get the work. In a similar vein the arms trade is a very lucrative business for many UK companies
We're into the 2nd term of a Tory government that has decided to fight debt by cutting spending, it's unfortunate that the debt has risen during this period but that's just a small matter
ReplyDeleteOnce again the majority of people of Scotland who voted in the general election got a government they didn't want, we have but one Tory MP
Raising the council tax will see us with an instant penalty from the Scottish government
Many of us in work have been on pay freezes or seen very small percentage increases for many years
How about councillors take a 10% cut in salary to help with the funding gap?
The majority of us voted to remain within the UK in 2014, living with a Tory government one of the consequences and with no credible opposition in Westminster other than our SNP MP's it looks as though they'll enjoy a third term
ReplyDeleteThe Tory mandate is to cut and then cut again. Scotland will be effected by this no matter how much the Holyrood government tries to buffer us against the Tory cuts
Learn to live with it folks, there's no sane way out
@ Anon 11.38 re Scottish Government underfunding. Are there statistics out there to back up your case or do you just feel that Councils and the NHS don't get enough money anyway?
ReplyDeleteThe Council Tax was and remains a Tory Tax. It is only marginally better than the Poll Tax.
ReplyDeleteIf you live in the biggest of big houses in the West End you pay 3 times as much as the smallest wee house in Nairn.
Under the old rates system it would have been 10 X greater.
We need a new system. A better system and a fairer system.
A system that allows those with the broadest shoulders to see us through the hard times.
The hard times that were caused by the rich and the powerful.
The hard times that are harming the poor and the dispossessed.
The Scottish Government is working alongside COSLA to propose a better system for local taxation.
I hope it is in party manifestos next year.
Young Councillor Fuller is right - for any substantial differnce to be made to Council income - the local Tax would have to rise by huge percentages.
As for foreign aid ...... If we had dropped aid on Iraq instead of bombing and killing - we might not be in the mess we currently air.
Foreign Aid = Good; Weapons of Mass Destruction at Faslane = Bad!
A 36.9% of a 66.1% turnout gives a 'mandate' to screw over the less well off and poor. Ain't democracy just grand?
ReplyDeleteHope all those folk who voted 'No' in last years referendum are happy now. We face endless Tory governments who will dismantle the Welfare State. Aye, Better Together
ReplyDeleteAye, all those folk who voted NO probably think they were safe from the forthcoming cuts. I remember John Finnie saying prior to the Referendum that the Tories had only implemented 40% of the proposed cuts. Here comes the outstanding 60%! Don't say they weren't warned, hope they don't think that sticking their heads in the sand will save them - their backsides are going to get kicked like everybody else's!
ReplyDeleteAs a no voter, yes I am happy. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAnon@5.42pm, aye but for how much longer?
ReplyDeleteHere's a little taste of what Better Together will bring us in the next few years. Well done, you must feel proud
ReplyDeletehttp://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/scrap-the-human-rights-act-and-keep-ttip-heres-what-you-voted-for-and-will-get-with-a-tory-government-britain-10235374.html
Ach we'll still get the wee bit dribbles aff Boris Johnston's platter. The great City of London loves all oor birlin and hirlin. They'll just want us to keep tuggin oor forelocks.
ReplyDeleteThere's folkies dyin oan the streets o' Copenhagen and Dublin - where they are too puir, too wee an a wee bit too daft to run things thereselves.
Wur much better thegither mon.
Just keep smiling and keep living! Enjoy every day!
ReplyDeleteAlways the victims, poor souls of Nairn. In the 50's and 60's it was Elgin's fault, more recently Inverness. There were always those with a wider vision who saw the real enemy as the central belt and the English. The current posters are following a fine tradition, sit on your backside and blame someone else.
ReplyDeleteYes anon 9.12 I am proud. Proud that I live in a democracy whom over the last 12 months has firmly decided what they want for the future. This country has become a country of entitlement where so many wander around with their hands out expecting to be given everything and blaming others for their situation. Not even the SNP's socialist promises of freebies was enough to hoodwink the electorate. Stop crying about it, stop blaming people, take responsibility and be a part of it. Alternatively you could move to a country more in tune with your minority socialist beliefs?
ReplyDeleteAnon@12.53pm, showing your ignorance and disdain there, I'm afraid. You think these things only happen in Nairn, all small towns or communities are the same, it's human nature. In fact, on Radio 4 tonight (23/6/15)at 18.30 Mark Steel's comedy show came from Alderney in the Channel Islands and guess what, the gist of the programme was that they blamed things on everywhere else.
ReplyDeleteAlso, reading the comments I don't really see where you are coming from apart from being sarcastic, but how do you know the posters are sitting on their backsides?