'Biggest ever' consultation on council spending launched

Author: LocalGov.co.uk - Oct 1, 2010

The Local Government Group (LGG) has launched a mass-consultation on council spending to give residents a say on how savings should be made, ahead of anticipated cuts to town hall budgets in the spending review.

The group claimed the exercise would be one of the ‘biggest ever’ consultations on public spending.
LGID managing director, Rob Whiteman Its YouChoose website has gone live, showing residents how councils spend their money and inviting suggestions of how to make savings.

Local Government Improvement and Development, part of the Local Government Group, has invited local authorities to run the software on their own websites, of which, 23 have already expressed an interest.

The organisation’s managing director, Rob Whiteman, said: ‘The scale of [anticipated] cuts will leave councils faced with some of the most difficult decisions they will ever have had to make. These are extraordinary times, and it is only right that these tough choices are informed by the people who will be most affected.

‘This consultation will be one of the most thorough and comprehensive ever taken on local public spending. Residents will be given a breakdown of exactly where their taxes are spent and invited to tackle the incredibly difficult balancing act of cutting millions of pounds from the budget and keeping increases to council tax low, while protecting vital services like schools, libraries, parks and waste collection.

‘YouChoose will ensure that councils are able to make these difficult decisions in the most democratic way possible.’

The software was pioneered by Redbridge LBC, which is currently running a budget consultation. It has received 1,2000 responses within the first two weeks.

The council's leader, Keith Prince, said all local authorities would have to cut spending and residents should be given a say on how it should be done.

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