Life is hard – background to the previous post

In a sign about how seriously things have changed (and how seriously the Evening Post is taking the consequences of the financial mess – perhaps not surprising given the public furore and published website reactions) for the first time, I was asked to write a piece for their ‘Opinion’ section on the editorial pages saying what ‘Labour would do’ if this was our budget.

However, I had to explain that it wasn’t as simple as that. It’s very difficult for an Opposition party (in local government at any rate) to produce a proper alternative budget – we have neither the physical resources nor the access to the accountants to do the number crunching or the legal advice.


I also had to point out that Labour wouldn’t have been ‘here’ in the first place. Whilst there is no doubt that local government across the UK faces a dire economic situation, the position in Swansea is made so much worse by the consequences (and costs) of the decisions made by the Lib-Dem/Independent coalition led (sic) by Chris Holley.


Their ‘borrow & spend’ philosophy (‘maxing out the credit card’ as I have previously described it) has been ruinous. Swansea cannot borrow any more money until it repays a large chunk of what it already owes and the repayment costs of which are crippling. My personal view was that the Lib-Dems/Independents had adopted a sort of ‘DFS two years free credit’ idea, get the goodies now but pay for it after the (2008) election. And as they didn’t expect to win, they didn’t expect it to be their problem anyway.


As the article makes clear, Labour would have done it differently. The figures are all correct and were provided by Council officers. You will see that they are eye-wateringly large.


One of the big items in the Administration’s budget strategy is their decision to renew the Contingency Fund, an idea with which Labour profoundly disagrees. This is set at £10million and its redirection to specific services would be a useful source of funds. However, it’s clear from our continuing discussions with Council officers that our ability to propose radical budget alternatives based on this Fund is seriously curtailed, as any proposal based on a significant reduction in the fund would be ruled out of order. We are still looking for other room to manoeuvre, but as I said in the opening, this is very difficult with the resources at our disposal and officers can hardly be expected to assist us in demolishing their own strategy!


What’s also clear is that Qed 2020 (the education improvement programme) is dead in the water. No capital budget provision been made and it can only proceed if WAG put up the money. This is not assured. In any event, all future grant schemes will require a 20% contribution from the local authority. This contribution will have to be unsecured borrowing and must be underwritten by a disposal of education land that will repay the borrowing (see my comment on borrowing above). Holley and his mates will be required to submit a robust business case, showing the land, value and disposal dates etc, all agreed in advance or the scheme will not be allowed to proceed. As I say, it’s dead in the water.

The reports also make clear that the shiny new Quadrant Bus Station is already tarnished –and it isn’t even built yet! Due to various on site problems (the statutory undertakers (Gas, Water etc) not actually knowing where their underground services were, design problems – it wasn’t high enough to accommodate the shops and so forth) it is suggested that the funding timetable may have been put at risk – and some of this may fall back on the Authority. Doubt is also cast on the start of the major £9million refurbishment of the Glyn Vivian Art Gallery. Despite all the excited press announcements of the wonders of the project and the imminent planned years long close-down, it seems that the scheme is light by around £3million. It’s been made clear that it won’t start until this gap has been firmly closed – either by finding further monies (hard) or cutting back on the actual work, which could put some of the grants already received at risk.


At a recent Scrutiny Board meeting, the Finance Cabinet Member, the nice Mr Rice, tried vainly to keep the Qed 2020 ship afloat, and had no real answers as to why the Glyn Vivian had been so loudly announced as starting, when the funding wasn’t complete and the total silence on the problems with the Quadrant. That’s open, transparent and democratic government for you, well the Lib-Dem version.


Meanwhile, he’s closing the Tennis Centre (£50,000), taking £40 grand off Cefn Hengoed Leisure Centre and (a really cheap one this) introducing a £10 per session charge to kids for the use of musical instruments in music lessons – nice egalitarian measure that one.


Makes you wonder really. We’ve had Cleggy in the EPost telling us how they’d run the country and Kirsty why we should all vote Labour (sorry Lib-Dem). Run the country – they can’t even run the city! Or is there an ‘i’ missing? I’m trying to remember that crack about whelk stalls – but it’s probably a cliché?