Labour's Cuts: #1 - Frontline waste collections

Well, I've long predicted that if they took control of the Council Reading Labour would cut frontline services.

Because due to their inability to manage the budget they are not capable of doing anything else.

The question then became not if they would cut services but what would get the chop first.

As I pointed out yesterday with no public consultation whatsoever Labour councillors have scrapped end of term rubbish collections from student areas.

Residents living around the University already suffer from parking problems and missed bin collections - now they will have to suffer from even worse, a massive build up of rubbish.

Thanks to Reading's Labour councillors.

The Labour councillor for Redlands reports:

"We have discovered that the cuts in the Street Care teams and services means that they are advising us that they no longer have any spare capacity to undertake additional collections at the end of term in the student areas of Redlands."

It's time she woke up and realised that Labour are running the Council and the buck stops with them.

She is responsible for this cut and thanks to her residents will now get less services for their money.

This was never one of our budget savings.

Do you really think that given we represent two of the biggest student areas in Reading we would contemplate such a cut?

We were planning increases to bin collections and recycling services.

All budgeted for and costed.

Labour are making these cuts because of short-sighted decisions such as the decision not to bring in green waste charges.

Their failure to do their homework on this policy means that the Council has already lost £80,000 from lost income.

How are Labour proposing to pay for services? Higher Council Tax? If they are expecting government handouts...er there won't be any.

This must be one of the 'alternative strategies for savings' Cllr Lovelock is talking about in her priorities for Cabinet 2011/12.
And what were the Greens' role in this?

They have allowed this to happen.

So much for openness and transparency.

Where were the details of this cut in their respective manifestos?

It didn't take them long - just one week before Labour broke their promise to involving the public in every decision.

From the Council that brought you the one-way IDR fiasco and the Shinfield Road debacle!

Their promises are not worth the paper they are written on.

Sign our petition against Labour's latest cut to frontline services here.