It is with great disappointment that I have to report that Swindon’s Conservative Councillors, backed up by Liberal Democrat Councillors on Swindon Council, voted against Labour’s alternative budget that would have ensured more potholes would have been fixed; more apprenticeships created; and would have prevented cuts to Dial a Ride, Children’s Centres and bus subsidies.
It is with great disappointment that I have to report that Swindon’s Conservative Councillors, backed up by Liberal Democrat Councillors on Swindon Council, voted against Labour’s alternative budget that would have ensured more potholes would have been fixed; more apprenticeships created; and would have prevented cuts to Dial a Ride, Children’s Centres and bus subsidies.
The Swindon Labour Group had presented this amendment with the aim of giving better value for money to Swindon’s hardworking council-taxpayers and to ensure services to Swindon’s vulnerable people- such as the elderly, disabled and children- are not reduced.
Despite claiming that “we’re all in this together”, the Conservative administration backed up by Liberal Democrat Councillors:
Opposed cutting £100,000 for the cost of Councillors by reducing the size of the Council’s Cabinet and reducing the number of council committee
Supported the Council continuing to spend £1.8m per year on consultants
Supported retaining the same levels of senior management while cutting back on staff who deliver the Council's frontline services
Supported retaining the level of funding for the Communications and Insight department
And they voted to keep spending £17K of council-taxpayers’ money on Bottled Water each year
Meanwhile, the Conservative administration backed up by Liberal Democrat Councillors:
Voted against adding £220,000 to the Council’s potholes programme to address Swindon’s pothole problem
Voted against increasing the number of apprentices in Swindon
Voted against keeping subsidies for the number 22 and 25 bus services which transports people living in Old Town and the number 21 bus service that transports people living in Coleview and Covingham
Voted for cuts to Swindon’s Children Centres
What this shows is that Conservative and Liberal Democrat Councillors are out of touch with what Swindon Council-taxpayers expect from their Councillors and their Council. They fail to understand that Swindon Council-taxpayers expect, above all else, that the services provided to them are delivered well and that the town’s vulnerable people are protected. That is what Swindon’s Labour councillors will relentlessly focus on.
Cllr Jim Grant
Swindon Labour Group