by Paul Scully | Apr 18, 2010 | News |
Times are tough economically. Local residents are feeling the pinch of the recession and unemployment has risen sharply, yet we still have one of the highest council tax levels in London. Since council tax was introduced, the Liberal Democrat-run administration has increased council tax by over 205%; four times the rate of inflation.
Quality services and real value for money can, and should, go hand in hand. By making adjustments to the way Sutton Council is managed and by working with a Conservative Government, a Conservative-run Council intends to freeze council tax
for the next four years.
Our Commitment:We believe in real value for money whilst seeking to reduce the burden on taxpayers. We aim to freeze council tax over the next four years.
![Pledge No. 10 – Closing Down Nuisance Pubs & Clubs]()
by Paul Scully | Apr 17, 2010 | News |
So much crime and antisocial behaviour in our Borough is fuelled by alcohol. Whether it is being sold by careless landlords to binge drinkers or by irresponsible shop owners to underage children, we need to bring this to a stop.
In the first 100 days, a Conservative Council will begin to review the licences of troublesome pubs and clubs in the borough and if they are seen to be the catalyst for crime and antisocial behaviour, we will shut them down. We will keep under review closing times to ensure that we are not importing disorder from outside the Borough carried out by those attracted to late-night drinking in Sutton.
Our Commitment: Within the first 100 days of a Conservative Council, we will start a review of all licenced premises known to be trouble spots and if necessary, shut them down.
by Paul Scully | Apr 17, 2010 | News |
Last Sunday, the Politics Show on BBC featured Sutton as a Council in London pioneering Smarter Travel Sutton. This is an initiative from Transport of London, with money bid for using the support of both parties in Sutton. It fits with our philosophy of encouraging people to do the right thing rather than using the stick. It fits less well with the rigid anti-car policies of the Liberal Democrats.
My main issue with the Liberal Democrat Council is that they have run out of their own ideas, living off their legacy of past glories rather than building on it. There comes a time for nearly every political adminstration where they forget why they sought election in the first place, complacently defending their actions from an ivory tower. We have reached that place in Sutton. The political administration is buffered by an excellent team of officers running the corporate council on a day to day basis. Many of the mistakes when residents see red are as a result of political interference. Councillors should be elected to enhance the Council not hinder it.
I hope that you see with the pledges that I am posting and the full 100 pledges of the main manifesto that we want to build on the good things that the Council do, eliminating the bad including the waste within the Civic Offices and the poor decisions made without consulting residents. Sutton is a good place to live, but it can be so much better. We need some fresh thinking to make this happen. The Conservatives have the new ideas to bring positive change to Sutton.
by Paul Scully | Apr 14, 2010 | News |
As a Borough, Sutton sends 70% of its waste to landfill and recycles and an unimpressive 22% of all produced rubbish. With landfill tax set to reach £40 per tonne on top of the actual cost of landfill, it is time the council took real action.
A Conservative administration will tackle this unsustainable statistic. Our responsibility is not to settle for a Borough that feels good about recycling, but one that is actually good at recycling. We believe people should be rewarded for doing the right thing. We believe in the carrot, not the stick. This is why we will introduce incentive-based recycling. Drawing on successful examples from elsewhere, we will offer financial rewards for residents who help the Council and help the environment.
Land fill taxes are increasing rapidly. The Council faces swingeing fines by the Government if we miss our target to reduce the amount of waste disposed of in landfill. This will fall on the taxpayer in the form of increased Council Tax, so we need to tackle the issue now. The Council saves money by diverting waste away from landfill; we will pass on savings to residents.
Our Commitment: We will develop a system of financial rewards and incentives for people who help the Council and the environment by recycling more of their waste.
by Paul Scully | Apr 14, 2010 | News |
Apparently Sutton’s gully cleaning machine has just gone past my house. The drips of water on the road demonstrate the problem of lack of preparation as they show that the machine is spending more time cleaning the white lines in the middle of the road than it is the gullies.
In another move, the Council are looking to introduce a Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) around Carshalton Beeches Station, including Salisbury Road where I live. Now, either the Council believe there is a parking issue in the area, in which case it would have been sensible to have given advanced notice to ask people to move their cars, or they don’t in which case, why waste money on a consultation about a CPZ? We live in austere times and this is one small example where smarter working would give residents more for less. The process would have cost less and the gullies would have been cleaner.
You may wonder why there is a picture of a big cat here? It is a Snow Leopard, a rare animal that has never been filmed until recently. It took David Attenborough’s team three years to get a glimpse. Still, it’s easier to get a picture of this than it is of Sutton’s solitary gully cleaner.
Times are tough economically. Local residents are feeling the pinch of the recession and unemployment has risen sharply, yet we still have one of the highest council tax levels in London. Since council tax was introduced, the Liberal Democrat-run administration has increased council tax by over 205%; four times the rate of inflation.
