Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
£1.5 million cost of binning the Town Plan..... plus, the cost of drafting a New Town Plan.
£4 million costs of a Transport Interchange. (Unused Transport Interchange)
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
£1.5 million cost of binning the Town Plan..... plus, the cost of drafting a New Town Plan.
£4 million costs of a Transport Interchange. (Unused Transport Interchange)
So that takes it up to £9m - any more?
Any more ... how about £358,000 written-off business rates for one person's 'empire'? By the way, following whispers of closed doors, can anyone shed any light on what's happening at the Staincliffe at the moment?
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
£1.5 million cost of binning the Town Plan..... plus, the cost of drafting a New Town Plan.
£4 million costs of a Transport Interchange. (Unused Transport Interchange)
So that takes it up to £9m - any more?
£20,000 Loss on the Summerhill Cafe.
£6,000 on a Coffee Stain on 'An Office Desk'.
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 02: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
£1.5 million cost of binning the Town Plan..... plus, the cost of drafting a New Town Plan.
£4 million costs of a Transport Interchange. (Unused Transport Interchange)
So that takes it up to £9m - any more?
£20,000 Loss on the Summerhill Cafe.
£6,000 on a Coffee Stain on 'An Office Desk'.
Up to £9.4m nearly up to 50% - but by the CAB's calculations they have cost each Hartlepool household £200 each
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 02: PM
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 02: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: fred c on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Quote from: jeffh on December 30, 2017, 01: PM
Read the Mail article by our Dire Leader criticising cuts from Central Government.
As he is including both historical cuts and cuts up to 2020 it begs the question as to why they -
Awarded themselves a 31% pay rise costing an extra £74,000 per year - so that's an extra £296,000 up to 2020
Spent nearly £100,000 on carpets on an unqualified whim
Waste about £500,000 on the Cafe in the Crem
Purchased Jacksons Landing only to pay to have it knocked down with a total cost of £1.6m
I'm sure this list can be expanded, but by my reckoning we are looking at £2.4 which is more that 10% of the cuts he's laying at Central Governments door
By the way, have we paid back the interest free Jacksons Landing loaning - or are we now paying interest? Looks like they'll be digging into the Reserves again under the category Raymondo's White Elephant.
There was also an interesting snippet in that the £600,000 put aside for the Longsar Hall development (yes £600,000) - I thought that the Seaton plan was to flatten it and build a paved Market Stall area - is now going to the Town Development fund - I'm sure they will put it to good use.
£1.5 million cost of binning the Town Plan..... plus, the cost of drafting a New Town Plan.
£4 million costs of a Transport Interchange. (Unused Transport Interchange)
So that takes it up to £9m - any more?
£20,000 Loss on the Summerhill Cafe.
£6,000 on a Coffee Stain on 'An Office Desk'.
Up to £9.4m nearly up to 50% - but by the CAB's calculations they have cost each Hartlepool household £200 each
Various 106 Monies
Wynyard..... £800,000
King Oswy...£27,000
We mustn't forget the 'cuts' are the crutch they actually depend on and whenever there's a problem the mantra of 'blame the cuts' is wheeled out and trumpeted loud and long.
If a Labour government was to be in power and imposing cuts, would they be as vociferous?
How long have we been living under government cuts ? Seven years? and what vanity projects have still been embarked upon regardless?
Quick to cut bus subsidies, mostly used by Labour voters, yet equally quick to embark on unjustifiable projects whose financing could have been used better.
Manor Residents, WCNE, Wilcox. at least £1 million
The Bakery. over £300,000
The Leaders taxi, AKA the Ceremonial Mayor's Car????
Northern Lights - who knows how much?
Awhile now the Phoenix Centre. They still won't publish the report.
Now in excess of £11.5m - almost £250 per Hartlepool household - no wonder we are p****d off - and they've got it all stitched such that you can't hold them to account.
We have only looked at the financial side - how about the people
Councillor living in London
ex Mayor still not held to account over his lies and allegations directed towards Newcastle Council
Present Mayor in denial over being a Manor Residents Association trustee
ex Councillor spending time in prison
Councillor described by a Judge as being unfit to run a Company
Conservative councillors constantly supporting the Labour Group
Council Leader constantly applying the 3 line whip to get his own way
Councillor de-selected to make way for a preferred candidate
Again I am sure the list can be added to
They're the Bash Street Kids of local politics, except the Bash Street Kids are likeable.
Wonder how much extra it cost to get the 'Vision' artwork updated to include the 'World Class'/'Jewel In The Crown' Concert Venue?
(https://imagizer.imageshack.com/v2/1024x768q90/923/8Mnbd1.jpg) (https://imageshack.com/i/pn8Mnbd1j)
It's amazing what you can get on the back of a fag packet. ::)
Council buys a white elephant.
Can not find a buyer or any use for purchase.
Desperately searched for a 'use' for building to validate decision to purchase.
In the end all they can manage is a show by a couple of groups just before they tear it down..........hmmm............a light bulb flickers in the Dear Leaders head........... and suddenly a 'Concert Venue' becomes an integral part of the Vision!
We really are led by a group of clowns who obviously know nothing of Dock Rock. .
I really wonder how much longer this council can get away with the total and utter b****x they keep coming out with, the comments on the Mails FB page on this article show people really are starting to get seriously p****d off with CAB and his clowncil.
The insults aimed at him on a personal level are indicative of the anger generated by his constantly blaming the government for the desperate straights the town finds itself in, there are positives to be had however, the growing number of discontents on social media will only grow.
I was initially led to believe the Seaton money was in the £100K mark but recent conversations have it as closer to £1M
Who knows what the real number is but it all appears to have disappeared without much to show for it.
I think it is worth a FOI request to get to the bottom of it.
According to CAB at the last council meeting the £600,000 Seaton cash, has been integrated into the councils central funding pot.
Quote from: fred c on December 31, 2017, 06: AM
According to CAB at the last council meeting the £600,000 Seaton cash, has been integrated into the councils central funding pot.
Did I not see Shane explain all this on the Post Facebook page?
Was it £600k or has most of it already been spent ?
Quote from: Stig of the Seaton Dump on December 31, 2017, 10: AM
Was it £600k or has most of it already been spent ?
From the Mail article it was £600,000 set aside for Longscar Hall - so they shouldn't have spent that, but it looks as though the Longscar Hall purchase and demolition is now dead in the water
Chasing a property they had sold.
We might have something to show for it if they had put a new community facility on land they already owned.
'Austerity' supposedly started in 2010. So, any 'expenditure after that date must have been undertaken in the knowledge that money was going to be tight. So what unnecessary spending can be justified after that date and which of the projects were embarked upon after2010 and which of them were actually financed by government ?
It's like someone being told times were hard at work and wages would be cut, going out and buying a flash sports car. Crazy.
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 01, 2018, 10: AM
'Austerity' supposedly started in 2010. So, any 'expenditure after that date must have been undertaken in the knowledge that money was going to be tight. So what unnecessary spending can be justified after that date and which of the projects were embarked upon after2010 and which of them were actually financed by government ?
It's like someone being told times were hard at work and wages would be cut, going out and buying a flash sports car. Crazy.
When there's no accountability, the information flow is in one direction, there is no public scrutiny and you don't care about the people you represent then it's easy.
It appears to be governance by whim or whatever catches the eye. I ssometimes feel like I'm living in some mediaeval fiefdom where the opinions of the serfs are as relevant as a chocolate nuclear reactor. The inevitable outcome of party politics in local government, taken to a new level of the bizarre.
And people still vote for them, the biggest conundrum of them all.
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 01, 2018, 12: PM
It appears to be governance by whim or whatever catches the eye. I ssometimes feel like I'm living in some mediaeval fiefdom where the opinions of the serfs are as relevant as a chocolate nuclear reactor. The inevitable outcome of party politics in local government, taken to a new level of the bizarre.
And people still vote for them, the biggest conundrum of them all.
If you are controlling the information flow it's not a conundrum at all - the Life and the Mail are both controlled by the LabTor Group - no bad news just good news stories. They've stifled the public at Council Meetings to ensure there is no public scrutiny.
Quote from: jeffh on January 01, 2018, 01: PM
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 01, 2018, 12: PM
It appears to be governance by whim or whatever catches the eye. I ssometimes feel like I'm living in some mediaeval fiefdom where the opinions of the serfs are as relevant as a chocolate nuclear reactor. The inevitable outcome of party politics in local government, taken to a new level of the bizarre.
And people still vote for them, the biggest conundrum of them all.
If you are controlling the information flow it's not a conundrum at all - the Life and the Mail are both controlled by the LabTor Group - no bad news just good news stories. They've stifled the public at Council Meetings to ensure there is no public scrutiny.
People say these two are an irrelevance, but they're not. Everyone isn't using 'social meeeeeja' and rely on the the likes of these to supply news of what's going on in the town. If that's the case and you have no access to other. Got,action, Hartlepool is thriving.
I class neither of them as newspapers in my definition of a newspaper, but the Get along gang have no problem in seeing their value.
Who chairs the scrutiny committee........ or does scrutiny come under Audit & Governance, that committee is chaired by Ray M Wells, as a Tory you would think he would be keen to pick up on anything and everything that is at odds with Tory party policies........... that just doesn't happen and voting records would show why.
The Seaton by-election was a really good example of the power of social media..... an unbiased Seaton Carew News FB Page gave a platform to all parties and allowed residents of Seaton to form an opinion on the candidtes, Hartlepool Media Group also made a really good job of an unbiased video for all candidates....... the fact that the Labour candidate and her supporters ie. the Member, CAB, SAB, Lindridge, Beck et al made a complete orchestras stalls out of the campaign shows how much influence an unbiased social media campaign can have.
Seaton Residents saw right through the bluster, bulls**t and fly tipping b****x they came out with........ if only every ward had a good unbiased community focused FB Page.
I think you'll find Labour succeed where social media usage (usage highlighting community politics) is lowest and reliance on traditional output from newspapers for local news and politics.
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 02, 2018, 06: AM
I think you'll find Labour succeed where social media usage (usage highlighting community politics) is lowest and reliance on traditional output from newspapers for local news and politics.
Let's not forget they also use such tactics as free rubbish removal and fun days using Ward Budget money from their own and other wards
Quote from: jeffh on January 02, 2018, 09: AM
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 02, 2018, 06: AM
I think you'll find Labour succeed where social media usage (usage highlighting community politics) is lowest and reliance on traditional output from newspapers for local news and politics.
Let's not forget they also use such tactics as free rubbish removal and fun days using Ward Budget money from their own and other wards
If that isn't a total mis-use of public money I don't know what is.......
Quote from: fred c on January 02, 2018, 03: PM
Quote from: jeffh on January 02, 2018, 09: AM
Quote from: Inspector Knacker on January 02, 2018, 06: AM
I think you'll find Labour succeed where social media usage (usage highlighting community politics) is lowest and reliance on traditional output from newspapers for local news and politics.
Let's not forget they also use such tactics as free rubbish removal and fun days using Ward Budget money from their own and other wards
If that isn't a total mis-use of public money I don't know what is.......
No, No, No Fred you don't understand - it's Ward money so it's theirs, at least that's what they think
Jeff..... what is doubly galling is the fact those councillors who voted to accept the 31% rise in allowances and then realised they had dropped a b*****k still accepted the extra £1800 and boasted about using it in their wards....... in effect, those councillors upped their ward budgets by £1800.
£1800 buys an awful lot of free burgers and hotdogs, not to mention freebie waste collections.......
For the Many...... Not the Few....... My A**e
It's a bit like extra pocket money that their 'Mam' and 'Dad' in the council chamber advise them how to spend to please Mam and Dad. Such obedient children.