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Dear Chancellor of the Exchequer,
I write to highlight my concerns regarding the future regulation of the financial sector. For reasons of justice, equity and fairness we need a new banking settlement.
I believe that the taxpayer is an invisible investor in every banking business, whether it is openly nationalised, such as RBS, or purely private, such as Goldman Sachs or HSBC. This means that taxpayer interests must be represented in their regulatory framework.
The economic arguments for taming the dominance of the finance sector are overwhelming. The social and moral arguments are incontrovertible. Recent polling commissioned by Compass shows that 75% of the public are worried that banks have not changed and are still not being properly regulated which could be bad for the economy, I too share these concerns.
I would therefore like you to implement six policy proposals; a mixture of short and long term, which if introduced in the right way would significantly transfer risk from the state and taxpayers back on to financial institutions. These policies would help deliver greater taxpayer value, help tackle egregiously high pay and re-balance the economy away from the over-dominance of the financial services.
These are:
• Remuneration Caps – Supported by 76% of those polled. A cap across the whole of the UK banking sector would help prevent the movement of staff away from RBS to higher paying rivals that are less constrained by government pressure and public outrage. It would reduce the staff pay bill, saving the taxpayer money and help shore up the balance sheet.
• Extending the Banker’s Windfall Tax to other institutions such as hedge funds (supported by 60% of those polled), who have benefited from public money; this would further prevent staff from leaving RBS and seeking higher remuneration in other sectors.
• The separation of retail and investment banks, supported by 68% of those polled.
• Repeating the one-off windfall tax on bankers’ bonuses annually, supported by
59% of those polled.
• A financial transactions tax, supported by 51% of those polled.
• A High Pay Commission, supported by 65% of those polled.
A banking crisis like this must never happen again, but to make sure we must act now. A new banking settlement is not only popular, but it is the right thing to do.
Kind regards
The Conservatives nationally have announced plans to set up Swedish-style “free schools”. These will be schools funded and managed outside local control. However, their overall plan to cut the education budget means his ability to establish new schools will inevitably depend on raiding the budgets of existing schools. Proposals like these just rob Peter to pay Paul. There are, not surprisingly, no proposals on how to improve schools that do not wish to go it alone.
On the curriculum, Conservative plans are in even more of an incoherent muddle. They plan to impose an absurdly detailed curriculum on most state-funded schools, while allowing free schools to adopt a pick-and-mix curriculum – even if this means dropping core subjects such as British history and modern languages. How that leaves specialist language colleges like
It is impossible to justify in any logical way a system which imposes such centralized uniformity on 23,500 schools while allowing a small minority to teach whatever they like at the taxpayers’ expense.
On Monday 30th November, the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers marched through Rochdale on their Homecoming Parade after long service in Helmand Province,
The Royal Regiment has absorbed the Lancashire Fusiliers, but has never lost its strong links to Lancashire, and to Bury and Rochdale in particular.
On a dry Monday morning, hundreds of Fusiliers dressed in desert kit marched along the Esplanade outside Rochdale Town Hall, accompanied by the band of the Gurkha regiment. The regiment was formally welcomed by the Mayor, Councillor Keith Swift.
They received a very warm welcome from Rochdale people who came out in large numbers to show their appreciation. Later, in the Great Hall of the Rochdale Town Hall, the men and officers remarked how appreciative they were of the welcome they had received in Rochdale.
The Fusiliers continue to recruit many men from the borough of Rochdale and other parts of Lancashire and North Manchester.
The police are clamping down on illegal driving up through the NO ENTRY at Half Acre Lane. The problem was raised at the monthly PACT meetings between the police and the community. The narrow single width lane is one way downhill from Half Acre Road to Roch Valley Way. Some illegal drivers cut off from Roch Valley Way and race up the lane to beat traffic at the cemetery lights. Local residents have a catalogue of frightening experiences, most commonly when illegal drivers refuse to reverse back and behave in an aggressive manner.The police are now carrying out random checks to catch the illegal drivers, and will be on patrol without warning.
Rochdale Township plans for a re-design of the junction with Roch Valley Way are now well advanced. In October, Councillor William Hobhouse carried out a text poll of local residents to find out whether they felt the Council plans had a good chance of success. Of 30 text replies, 28 were fully supportive; the remaining 2 had reservations about the scheme. Residents also suggested that a bollard be put in at the corner as a further measure. Councillor William Hobhouse said: ‘The response was fantastic. My phone seemed never to stop beeping at me for a few days. The Half Acre Lane text poll was the second text poll I have done in Bamford. Mobile phone community politics is a great way to communicate with residents, and it’s fun!’The work is expected to be done in early 2010.
This entry is a guide for Rochdale Borough small businesses who have been stung by the massive hike in prices for trade waste by the new Greater Manchester PFI contractor Viridor.
Anyone turning up at a trade waste site in Greater Manchester will pay a minimum of £58. That’s the minimum charge.
This is bad news for businesses or trades that make less waste but still need to get rid of it. The good news is that there is an alternative to the minimum charge.Ring Viridor on 0161 872 0976 and arrange for the purchase of large size bin bags at £1.08 + VAT each. These bags, when full, will be collected by Viridor on a weekly basis or by arrangement from the business.This scheme will allow businesses with small amounts of waste to manage it at a reasonable cost. Viridor details are: Viridor,
0161 872 0976
£1.08 per bag + VAT
I had the pleasure of attending, as a School Governor, the Celebration of Excellence Evening at
Residents challenge claims in Oakenrod planning application that community backs plans for a power wash and say the applicant has not consulted with anyone about whether his proposals have community support.
Councillor William Hobhouse has been approached by Oakenrod residents shocked to find that a planning applicant is stating that he has community support. The applicant, in his submission to the Council,
writes:
‘The proposed plan is 1. Power wash facilities. 2. A Car Hire service. 3. Refurbishment of the existing building.’
He continues: ‘The immediate neighbours have been consulted and they are found to be happy with the future plans.’
Local Resident Andrew Linaker said: ‘I was surprised to read that the community has been consulted. I have talked to all my neighbours, and not one of us has been asked. It is worrying that the applicant is making these claims. I think the people of Oakenrod want some proper development proposals for this site. At the moment the site is an eyesore, and the concern is that a car wash and car hire business is not going to improve the area.’
William Hobhouse added: ‘I welcome that the planning department now puts details of planning applications on to the internet. However, I am
concerned that applicants can use this route to make unsubstantiated claims that try to pre-empt the consultation period for objections or support for the application. I hope that the Oakenrod community will take the opportunity to express views about whether this application is appropriate for the area.’
Photo: In picture from Left is: Tahra Ahmed, Donna Scheider, Councillor William Hobhouse, Andrew Linaker and Dave Procter.
In March this year the problem was discussed at the Bamford Area Forum and in June funding proposals were presented to Rochdale
Residents in Links View, Half Acre Road,
Battersby Street and surrounding roads are being asked to express their views by text. They have been asked to say yes or no by text to the Council’s proposals to re-design Half Acre Lane to stop or discourage drivers driving illegally and dangerously the wrong way up the one way lane.
Local resident Gill Holt said: ‘My husband and I will be texting our response back. We appreciate to be asked, because it is important that the re-design achieves what we want it to achieve.’
Councillor William Hobhouse added: ‘This is the second text poll I have carried out. The first, in Moorgate Avenue achieved a fantastic response, and led to real results. With the re-design of Half Acre Lane, the residents know best what should or shouldn’t work. I am looking forward to going through the replies and picking up on the wealth of local knowledge that the residents have.’
I am writing these notes from Bournemouth - where I am at no cost to the taxpayer!
Everyone nationally and locally is talking about the terrible state of the nation’s finances. This means council finances as well, because councils are mostly funded by
Vince Cable has warned of a slash and burn attitude to cuts. He warns this means slashing services without structural change. If this approach happens in Rochdale Borough, every service will lose front line staff, and we will see slow service cuts.
There is another way, and Vince Cable is clear about what that should be:
First, the public sector wage bill should be frozen, but the salary cuts should come from the better paid.
Second, the public sector pensions must be reviewed. Each year, the cost to the council for pensions goes up and up. State subsidies of £28 billion have been mentioned. Locally that means that more and more of the £300 million council budget goes to pensions before a single service is provided. As the council’s rep on the Greater Manchester Pension Fund, I hope to write a couple of articles in about a month’s time.
Third, Rochdale Borough is a poor borough. Vince Cable has set out how it is quite wrong that ordinary pensioners along with workers on the minimum wage should pay tax, and that the tax threshold should be raised to £10,000. This will be paid for by closing some glaring tax avoidance loopholes – and having a fairer tax system where the much better off pay more.
The debate about structural change versus service cuts is a debate that must be had in Rochdale Borough too.
