Buy a ticket for the Mayors Charidee..............

mk1 · January 02, 2015, 07: AM

This has to be a joke

http://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/news/local/it-s-a-lottery-for-hartlepool-council-staff-1-7029313

COUNCIL staff will be invited to try their luck in a new lottery scheme which has been given the go-ahead.

The Hartlepool Borough Council lottery aims to generate funds for good causes and one-off projects as well as prizes for players.

The new scheme, which the council says will pay for itself, was given the green light by the authority's Finance and Policy Committee.

Alastair Smith, the council's Assistant Director for Neighbourhoods, said in a report: "The aim of the scheme is to generate income which can be used to support initiatives across all departments within the council and assist in the establishment of staff benefit initiatives."

The level of take-up is not yet known but projections show if just two per cent of council staff play it would generate £3,000 a year, rising to £42,000 for 30 per cent of the workforce.

Councillor Chris Simmons supported the idea, saying: "I think it's a good scheme.

"It is not going to come at any cost to the council.

"I think it has been very well thought-out."

It is proposed to charge staff who choose to play £5 a month, which would be deducted from their salaries.

Mr Smith added: "Take up is important to ensure that sufficient funds are collected to offer attractive prizes.

"The prize fund established will be used to support various projects including good causes and staff events.

"All applications to the fund will be received and approved by the Staff Lottery Committee and staff will be encouraged to put forward applications to the committee for consideration.

"The scheme will be managed and run by staff and is external to council funding streams."

Half of the lottery's proceeds are planned to be given back to staff in prizes in monthly draws.

The council will apply to the Gambling Commission for permission to operate the lottery

Coun Carl Richardson sought assurances that staff would not feel pressured into taking part and that it would be properly monitored.

Officers stressed it was purely a voluntary scheme.

Some staff have already been consulted over the idea.

Committee chairman Coun Christopher Akers-Belcher supported it.

He said: "Anything that can help lift morale in anyway can only be good."

Which Councillor is going to be the first to tender for running the draw?
Cranney?

First prize:

A free night out at the Domes. (you pay at the door and a refund will be sent in the post)

Second Prize:
A lovely mattress still in its plastic wrapping.

Third Prize:
Tin shed with superb vista. As seen and with all debts.

Perhaps they could combine it with previous 'cunning plans' and have 'The Ferris Wheel Of Fortune'!

Bumper time ahead for relatives of councillors..................

mk1 · January 02, 2015, 08: AM

All applications to the fund will be received and approved by the Staff Lottery Committee and staff will be encouraged to put forward applications to the committee for consideration.

Anyone want to speculate as to who will be in charge/running this committe?

Father Jack Barclay perhaps?

http://youtu.be/wedymc7ll1Y

testing times · January 02, 2015, 10: AM

It makes you wonder where HBC's focus is at the moment. Eye most definitely off the ball.

mk1 · January 02, 2015, 10: AM

We are indeed in strange times. Both Labour and UKIP are desperately trying to keep themselves out of the public eye. The SCABs are terrified of the next scandal that is going to bite them on the ar*se and UKIP are petrified the public will see their activists as they really are. Ignorant, uninformed and borderline illiterate.

Jim Gillespie · January 03, 2015, 03: PM

Say what you want about UKIP, but the simple truth is that they appeal to more voters right now than any other alternatives.

Lucy Lass-Tick · January 03, 2015, 04: PM

Quote from: Jim Gillespie on January 03, 2015, 03: PM
Say what you want about UKIP, but the simple truth is that they appeal to more voters right now than any other alternatives.

Should that be the case, doesn't it say more about the 'alternatives' than anything else?

mk1 · January 03, 2015, 06: PM

Quote from: Jim Gillespie on January 03, 2015, 03: PM
Say what you want about UKIP, but the simple truth is that they appeal to more voters right now than any other alternatives.

They dont. They want us to believe they do but their polling figures are way lower than the 2 major parties.
Truth is they are an extremist group and such groups never form governments on their own. There just 'aint enough loonies. Hence the total cleansing of UKIP chatter from open forums. They know the average UKIP activists come across as not very bright and their racist views are repugnant to most normal people. They have hid themselves away and hope enough people (like here?) believe all the hype about them being in with a chance.
No fecking chance!

Jim Gillespie · January 04, 2015, 01: PM

You guys can name call Farage, the UKIP party or indeed their voters all you want; but the elephant in the room is and will always be MIGRATION whilst we remain in the EU.

The Tories, Libdems and Labour all want us to STAY in the EU; thus UKIP becomes the only sensible voting option for adults who can think for themselves and realise the real damage such an influx of migrants in s short space of time has done to our country and it's very infrastructure. That does not make a UKIP voter, racist, of low intelligence or a thug that many like to portray UKIP as attracting.

They have my vote and will continue to do so until a Party with more sendible ideas comes along. The EU is corrupt and does our country far more harm than good.

mk1 · January 04, 2015, 02: PM

Quote from: Jim Gillespie on January 04, 2015, 01: PM
You guys can name call Farage, the UKIP party or indeed their voters all you want; but the elephant in the room is and will always be MIGRATION whilst we remain in the EU.

Not so. It is a UKIP obsession and in truth UKIP is a one policy 'hate the johny foreigners who cause all our problems' dustbin where all the closet racists can congregate and plan the torchlit book-burning rallies to be held at Wembley when they 'take over'.

Quote from: Jim Gillespie on January 04, 2015, 01: PMThat does not make a UKIP voter, racist, of low intelligence or a thug that many like to portray UKIP as attracting.

But it is a party of peole who seem to struggle to string a coherent sentence together. I know I was amazed at the style and content of elected UKIP member's posts here. Breathtakingly uniformed and written in a style that would shame a 12 year old. UKIP is not a real party but a collection of grumblers. They are under the delusion they can form a government so have expanded far beyond their abilty to control and moderate. When there own top brass admit the main task is to weed out the nutters who are prospective candiates then you know the problem is serious.

Quote from: Jim Gillespie on January 04, 2015, 01: PMThey have my vote and will continue to do so until a Party with more sendible ideas comes along. The EU is corrupt and does our country far more harm than good.

If you think a party run by an ex public schoolboy city trader establishment member is going to be any different than the others then you are in for a suprise. Farage is at present locked in a battle with his biggest contributer who wants to force UKIP to select Hamilton as a prospective MP. Farage has to chose principle or money and I have no doubt which path he will pick.

Sorry but I have seen these 'new dawns' many times before and they are all the same. Lying career politicians who will say and do anything to get their snouts in the trough.

Jim Gillespie · January 04, 2015, 03: PM

Let's just see how they do at the election.

Sorry for taking this off topic

DRiddle · January 06, 2015, 09: AM

I know I'm a bit slow to chip in with a comment on this issue, but personally I don't see a problem with it.

I was in the Finance and Policy meeting when the staff lottery was passed and it doesn't seem a big deal to me. If I'd thought it was, I would have said so in the meeting.

Staff can have £5 deducted at source from there wages, 25p of which is used to fund the administration of the scheme with the remaining £4.75 split between the prize pot and the good causes fund.

Nobody HAS to join it if they don't want to.

Lot's of workplaces have lottery syndicates or bonus ball schemes and such like. This is basically just a well organised one of those.

I appreciate people are concerned about the appropriation of any potential money raised, but the likelihood is this will raise maybe £50-£70,000 per year.

Even if every single person on HBCs workforce opted into it (which is very unlikely), we're still 'only' talking about around £130k per year.

Given that there are certain councillors who seem to exercise a certain degree of influence over MULTI-MILLION pound decisions, worrying about the potential misappropriation of money raised from this is small beans by comparison.

That said, I suspect that even the most ardent Labour Party Councillor must surely now accept that opposition councillors were RIGHT in trying to scrap ward budgets.

I'd welcome a debate with any councillor who can convince me that my council tax SHOULD be spent on paying the pitch fees of a local Sunday League Football team, but should NOT be spent on life guards and lollipop men/women.

My guess is that in time we will see the end of ward budgets and that this scheme could well replace them in terms of providing an avenue for local groups to bid for small amounts of funding.

Land Phil · January 06, 2015, 11: AM

I must have worked at a dozen or more different companies over the last 30 years and NOT ONE has had a FORMAL betting arrangement.

Sure there have been small groups doing the lottery but it has 100% been done by staff in their own time.

HBCs job is to empty bins, clean the roads etc. Betting is a whole different industry that they are not experts in, just like property development,

They need to stop wasting time on hair brained schemes and concentrate on not knocking down historic libraries, delivering a town plan etc.

HBC continues to be out of touch with the real world as usual, distracted by the trivia in a room full of a herd of elephants.

Eye on the ball, what ball ...ooo is it the bonus ball ?