The latest announcement of massive cuts to local council funding by central government are a sad indictment of the attitude of the Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties towards the basic idea of a civilised society. Julian Smith and his colleagues wash their hands of responsibility whilst library services are being slashed, community centres are closing, nurseries are shutting, street lights are being turned off and bus services are decimated. The cuts are cascading down through every level of society and there is much more to come if the current plans are allowed to continue.
The government has tried to cover up the extent of the funding cuts by double counting. North Yorkshire County Council’s Corporate Director has been quoted as saying the Government’s latest figures are ‘highly misleading’ and ‘blatantly not correct’.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have found the money to give millionaires a tax cut. They’ve also found the money to help the big banks repair their balance sheets after their greedy speculation came crashing down, so that they now carry on as if nothing had happened.
A Labour government would make different choices. It would act responsibly on behalf of the majority, not the vested interests of a rich few, and it would support the building blocks of a civilised society, built on the fundamental principle of fairness.
The government has tried to cover up the extent of the funding cuts by double counting. North Yorkshire County Council’s Corporate Director has been quoted as saying the Government’s latest figures are ‘highly misleading’ and ‘blatantly not correct’.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have found the money to give millionaires a tax cut. They’ve also found the money to help the big banks repair their balance sheets after their greedy speculation came crashing down, so that they now carry on as if nothing had happened.
A Labour government would make different choices. It would act responsibly on behalf of the majority, not the vested interests of a rich few, and it would support the building blocks of a civilised society, built on the fundamental principle of fairness.