These are the main reasons I want to stand to contribute to the Council. Setting them out creates a benchmark to see if my views change over the campaign and afterwards.
From next year all local authority functions are going to be managed by one, unitary council. It will be a council inevitably dominated by the issues of the urban South East of the County. It’s a lost cause, but I don’t understand why we are being given one unitary authority rather than the two (one mainly urban, one mainly rural) most people clearly wanted.
I think it’s critical that the Council is held to account during the transition and afterwards to minimise the cost and the upheaval to services. Perhaps it’s because I’m an accountant and have spent my life in general management that I see this oversight function as important and one where I can add most value. My business skill is in working with people to make things work better.
The practical issues I see as most important are:
- Care of the elderly. I had a self-interest here: my mother came to live with me when she became ill. She was very well looked after by the team from the Belford Medical Practice. But I worry, especially with an ageing community, that the resources devoted to the care of the elderly are under pressure and we need to ensure that the links between Social Services and the NHS work well together and that they are adequately resourced. The problems North Northumberland GPs are having in negotiating sufficient funding to maintain their services are indicative of this. Surgeries in Belford and Seahouses have a petition to sign supporting their servces.
- 2-tier education. I know from many parents that the move to 2 tier from 3 tier education will cause practical problems in this rural area and we need to find pragmatic solutions to minimise the impact.
- Economic development. This is largely outside direct County Council control: it’s up to the private sector. But it should be supportive of local businesses, and especially of the tourist industry as the main wealth creator. It is also vital that we have more affordable housing for local people to maintain the community and allow people to live near work.
- And of course: dual the A1
The above sound a bit activist for a Tory: I said in an earlier blog that I thought big Government usually messed things up – the heart is usually in the right place but the management process isn’t. But I do think that focussed local government working with local teams can achieve results. It’s boring, but good management is the key.
From next year all local authority functions are going to be managed by one, unitary council. It will be a council inevitably dominated by the issues of the urban South East of the County. It’s a lost cause, but I don’t understand why we are being given one unitary authority rather than the two (one mainly urban, one mainly rural) most people clearly wanted.
I think it’s critical that the Council is held to account during the transition and afterwards to minimise the cost and the upheaval to services. Perhaps it’s because I’m an accountant and have spent my life in general management that I see this oversight function as important and one where I can add most value. My business skill is in working with people to make things work better.
The practical issues I see as most important are:
- Care of the elderly. I had a self-interest here: my mother came to live with me when she became ill. She was very well looked after by the team from the Belford Medical Practice. But I worry, especially with an ageing community, that the resources devoted to the care of the elderly are under pressure and we need to ensure that the links between Social Services and the NHS work well together and that they are adequately resourced. The problems North Northumberland GPs are having in negotiating sufficient funding to maintain their services are indicative of this. Surgeries in Belford and Seahouses have a petition to sign supporting their servces.
- 2-tier education. I know from many parents that the move to 2 tier from 3 tier education will cause practical problems in this rural area and we need to find pragmatic solutions to minimise the impact.
- Economic development. This is largely outside direct County Council control: it’s up to the private sector. But it should be supportive of local businesses, and especially of the tourist industry as the main wealth creator. It is also vital that we have more affordable housing for local people to maintain the community and allow people to live near work.
- And of course: dual the A1
The above sound a bit activist for a Tory: I said in an earlier blog that I thought big Government usually messed things up – the heart is usually in the right place but the management process isn’t. But I do think that focussed local government working with local teams can achieve results. It’s boring, but good management is the key.
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