´óÏó´«Ã½

The Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls will lead Labour's local election campaign in the Eastern region.

He has been asked by Labour Leader Ed Miliband to front the campaign in the region. We understand it will be launched next month and will focus on public sector cuts.

Mr Miliband is asking all his shadow cabinet to adopt a region.

"Ed Balls is obvious for the east because he grew up in Norfolk and supports Norwich City," said a party source. "But in assigning such a big hitter to the region shows that Ed Miliband is taking the region seriously."

Labour has just 4% of county councillors in the east region and no representation at all on many local authorities.

Asked about his new role while visiting Milton Keynes, Mr Balls said the details were still being worked out. He accepted that Labour faced an uphill struggle in the east but added "The only way is up."

• Bookmark with:
• del.icio.us |
• Digg |
• Reddit
• - What's this?

Three years ago there was consternation when Essex County Council announced ambitious plans to reduce its costs by more than £300m.

The authority said it would "fundamentally change" the way it worked. It claimed it would "put the people of Essex first" aiming to give them "the best quality of life in Britain" while protecting the services they most cared about.

It said it would make greater use of external providers, better use of technology and rigorously take out unnecessary costs.

And that's what it's been doing for the last two years: concentrating on its so-called back office and procurement costs and largely sparing the services which people use.

The council says that half of the £98m savings approved this week will once again come from further efficiency savings.

"Our transformation programme has already delivered £150m of savings and we have become a leaner and smarter organisation," council leader Peter Martin told members.

"We will continue to drive down costs by getting better deals and prices with our suppliers and modernising our IT infrastructure."

There was, of course, some pain in the budget. School transport will take quite a hit with no more subsidy for those who go to faith schools in the county, escorts on the buses will go and transport for children with disabilites will be reviewed. The opening times of libraries and recycling centres will also be reduced.

But unlike many other authorities in the region, no libraries will close, meals-on-wheels stay in place, so too do Sure Start centres and the subsidy for rural transport.

Throughout the council meeting, Conservatives (who dominate the authority) kept congratulating themselves on setting a budget which they feel is creative and resourceful.

"Our financial prudence has stood the test of time," deputy leader David Finch told the council. "This is nothing like we've seen in some parts of the country where there have been thousands of job losses and many important services closing."

"This budget is exemplar and I'll be proud to vote for it," declared Councillor Kevin Bentley before launching into an attack on the opposition Liberal Democrats for failing to come up with any real objections.

The Liberal Democrats do have a problem. They are the main (almost only) opposition on the council and yet, as Councillor Bentley and others pointed out to them, they are members of the government which decided to so dramatically slash the central grant to councils.

Their leader, Tom Smith-Hughes, criticised the fact that the number of staff earning more than £80,000 has increased from nine to 111 in the last 11 years. He also is worried that vulnerable children will lose out because of the cuts to the Connexions service, but on the whole appears to support the Conservatives' strategy.

"I am worried when frontline services are hit," he said. "But I'm very grateful that many of the savings are being made (to the back office) because it means the impact on frontline services is much less. It is, of course, tough on staff."

The one Labour councillor on the authority, Julie Young, claimed the cuts were not needed and were ideologically driven. Conservatives shouted her down.

"Just wait until May," she muttered, referring to the local elections when Labour hopes to do well.

By then the job count on Essex County Council will be coming down by a further 1,200 over the next year and there will be 450 more redundancies.

• Bookmark with:
• del.icio.us |
• Digg |
• Reddit
• - What's this?

It's a Kafkaesque engagement for constituents. Plans for a huge new waste incinerator in Bedfordshire came under fire in the Commons today.

Mid Bedfordshire MP Nadine Dorries took up arms against the the, in the debate she had secured in the Westminster Hall.

The IPC is in charge of the decision over the American company, Covanta, who wants to build an incinerator at

"To date, my constituents have been forced into Kafkaesque engagement with a body which is to be abolished," the Conservative MP told Communities Minister Greg Clark.

The thrust of Ms Dorries' argument was that the IPC makes its decisions mainly on the basis of the relevant National Policy Statement.

It appears that it's all a matter of timing. When the Localism Bill is passed, the IPC will be abolished and the decision will then rest with the Secretary of State.

The IPC's examination will run until 15 July 2011 and it should reach its decision by 15 October 2011.

The IPC has said that if the National Policy Statement comes out before then then it will make the decision. If not, it won't.

Ms Dorries says this is not fair: "How can a process of public consultation exist if the information constituents are given is no longer relevant by the time the IPC make their decision?" she implored.

Mr Clark had little comfort, although he agreed that the decision on a piece of infrastructure of national importance should not be made without the input of the local community and that the IPC, as inherited, was an unelected quango and not accountable to the public.

"So why don't we scrap the IPC now?" asked Mr Clark. "The temptation is strong but ministers have to obey the law and we need to go through the parliamentary process."

He did promise to take the matter up with the IPC but he admitted there were very few powers to stop the process.

"If the National Policy Statement is not designated then it won't be down to the IPC but my expectation is the opposite. I don't want to raise the Honourable Lady's hopes.

"Unfortunately we are in a difficult position. We would rather not be in this position."

Earlier this month demonstrators protested against the planned incinerator.

If approved the plant in Stewartby But residents are concerned about emissions, traffic and its visual impact on the area.

Those concerns weren't allayed today.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

All aboard a rural bus in Cambridge... but how will cuts affect services?

If you live in the countryside you may be spending more time admiring the view.

Bus services are facing cuts and according to the government's own figures, rural services are the hardest hit.

It predicts that between 2% and 3% fewer people will use the buses in the future. This is being put down to an expected 2% rise in fares accompanied by a 2% reduction in services.

Why will that happen?

Because of the expected impact of a 20% reduction in the (BSOG) - or to you and me, the rebate the government gives the bus companies of around 70 to 80% of the fuel duty they pay for diesel and petrol. BSOG is currently worth around £500m a year.

In the October 2010 Spending Review the government announced that would be reduced by 20%, saving £300m by 2014/15.

The bus operators can decide for themselves whether to increase fares and the (CPT), who represents the bus industry, has suggested the reduction in bus subsidy could be absorbed without fares having to rise.

So we shall see.

In addition subsidised bus services funded by local authorities are under huge pressure as councils this week make their cuts. According to the most recent estimates councils run 22% of the total mileage operated by bus services last year.

(CBT) says this masks wide variations, so only 5% might be subsidised in an urban area while the figure might be closer to 100% in rural areas... like much of the eastern counties.

Many local authorities have already been forced to take on unprofitable routes and now they're facing year-on-year budget cuts many authorities believe sustaining these subsidised networks simply isn't feasible.

Norfolk voted to retain its rural bus services yesterday but transport is being affected by the £50m cuts in Cambridgeshire's budget.

Hundreds of residents are demanding the reversal of damaging county council cuts which threaten their bus services. They have signed a petition organised by the city's Liberal Democrats.

Passengers fear they could be stranded by to save £2.7 million on bus subsidies across the county over the next four years.

Lib Dem Cambridge City Councillor, Sarah Brown, said: "This decision could be incredibly damaging to the people of Cambridge who rely on these buses.

"Our petition with 542 signatures shows the great strength of feeling in our communities against these damaging cuts."

Cutting back on rural bus services is proving contentious across the region - including where it's being debated this evening.

The overall level of government subsidy for bus services increased dramatically after 1997.

Those days are well and truly gone.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

One thousand people will now lose their jobs and many services will be reduced. But the council is pleased that no libraries will close, most transport subsidies are staying in place and so too are crossing patrols - so lollipop ladies and men won't be erased from the streets of Norfolk as they surely will elsewhere.

"This is a budget Norfolk can be proud of," said council leader Derrick Murphy, who also admitted that this had been the toughest budget to draw up in the Council's 37 year history.

"We have listened to what the people of Norfolk felt were the most important to keep on funding."

"is seeing a grant cut of £29.4m in the coming year and a further £17.2m for the year after," he told councillors.

Lollipop people will not be cut in Norfolk

"The stark facts are that in future the council will not be doing so much and would not be employing as many people."

He said the authority would "radically transform" itself with a much sharper focus on efficiency and would work more closely with partners and local communities.

He also said that despite the cuts people should remember that the council would still be investing £603m of public money in local people, services and communities.

Just under £60m of savings were approved today.

Fifty one councillors voted for the budget, 21 against and there was one abstention.

Over the next three years the council is looking to save a total of £155m.

The main loser today was youth services, which sees its budget cut by £25m.

Although the council has announced plans today for a Youth Investment Fund designed to help local organisations take over the youth clubs and run them.

Some 400 people demonstrated outside and inside the Council chamber - they dubbed today the "Valentine's Day Massacre".

"It's an amazing turnout," said former Labour MP Ian Gibson.

"It's a real reflection of the anger in Norfolk which is simmering."

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

We have posted several blogs on the future of RAF Marham. This week the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Politics Show visited RAF Lossiemouth, the other base for Tornadoes which is also fighting for survival, and it's worth reporting the view from Scotland.

Conventional wisdom at the moment is that Marham is probably safe.

The armed forces minister said as much during a recent visit to the Moray Firth. In his opinion moving the Tornadoes' engineering base from Marham to Scotland would be "prohibitively expensive" and it was now a battle for survival between Lossiemouth and another Scottish air base, RAF Leuchars.

But the Lossiemouth campaigners are not giving up and there do appear to be several strong arguments in its favour.

The first is a strategic one. Once RAF Kinloss closes, Scotland will be down to just two air bases.

"Just about everything else is in the south of England," says Angus Robertson, the local MP and the SNP's defence spokesman.

"I fail to see the logic in that when it comes to the wider defence of the United Kingdom. Surely you don't put all your eggs in one basket?"

"I thought we were supposed to be defending the whole of the United Kingdom," says John Divers, a local Labour councillor. "People are starting to wonder if the government is only concerned about defending the south."

The other strong argument in Lossiemouth's favour concerns the latest rumour that's doing the rounds. It's being reported that the Army, who the Government were considering putting in Lossiemouth if the RAF moved, doesn't want to go to Scotland.

Several well-placed sources have told us that Army chiefs have told the Ministry of Defence that Scotland is much too far away from its training grounds, most of which are in the south.

They would much prefer to be at Marham just an hour away from the Stanta training area in Thetford Forest.

"It then begs questions about where the RAF trains," says Mr Divers. "Their bombing ranges are in the north of Scotland, the glens which they fly through while practising for Afghanistan are in the north of Scotland. Why have the expense of flying all the way from Marham when it's five minutes from here?"

And then there is the economic argument. The Moray Firth is very dependent on the military. It brings in £90m to the Lossiemouth economy every year and supports more than 3,000 jobs.

Only this week a new report said income levels in the area were lower than any other part of Scotland (£395 a week, compared to £560 in the central belt).

And there's a political argument. "If the coalition closes another air base in Scotland, it will show that the government doesn't give a damn about Scotland," says Mr Roberston, whose party wants complete independence.

Mr Drivers says David Cameron is supposed to be a supporter of the Union. "This is just giving ammunition to those who want to end it."

They are all arguments which make campaigners at Lossiemouth believe there is a still a strong chance of keeping the RAF on the Moray Firth. But if Lossiemouth wins its argument, will it have any effect on Marham's future?

Could the Tornadoes stay at both Marham AND Lossiemouth? When the stategic review came out last autumn, the government seemed to suggest that it wanted all the Tornadoes in one place.

Marham campaigners say all this shows why they're taking nothing for granted, they will keep on pushing the economic case for retaining the Norfolk base whenever they get the chance.

Now it seems there's no prospect of an early decision. The latest we've heard is that it won't be made until the summer recess.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

The MP for Bedford has been busy.

r is fresh from the success of the head teachers' lobby last month.

Thirty five head teachers from Bedford met the, pressing for more investment in the borough... and they got some.

That's hot on the heels of the funding for the academy in Bedford secured last summer.

Now the MP has enterprise in his sights.

"We've done a lot for the 'E' in education," he tells me, "Now it's 'E' for enterprise."

"We're encouraging the business community to put their hands in their pockets and help fund start up entrepreneurs and support them with advice."

If it sounds a bit like Dragons' Den - that's because it is: "But not in a competitive way. If we can get a community to support small businesses and create an enterprise culture it will be a fantastic thing for jobs in the town," he says.

And is confident in the 'E' for expectation that the town of Bedford can pull it off.

• Bookmark with:
• del.icio.us |
• Digg |
• Reddit
• - What's this?

Following the march by the English Defence League in Luton on Saturday, the Labour leader of the council, Hazel Simmons, said she would have liked a message of support from the Prime Minister.

That's because Mr Cameron delivered a speech in Munich on the day of the demonstration about the "failure of multiculturalism" and encouraged us towards "muscular liberalism" to deal with extremism.

The timing of his remarks were considered by many in Luton to be at best unfortunate and at worst, playing into the hands of the EDL. Its leader quoted the comments - stating the Prime Minister "is saying what we say".

Although Ms Simmons accepted that the timing of the speech couldn't be helped, she would have liked the good wishes of the Prime Minister that all would pass off peacefully.

I visited Downing Street last night and was able to convey to Mr Cameron the feelings of Luton's council leader.

explained that the speech was arranged a long time ago and that it simply wasn't feasible to postpone it.

I explained that that was accepted but nonetheless there were still hopes that a way perhaps could have been found for an expression of support towards the town.

replied that the message had been taken on board.

Now the people of Luton wait to hear if they are to face the prospect of another march in July.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

Rising petrol prices - MPs' in-trays are bulging with emails.

Talk to any MP from our region and they will say that one of the main subjects dominating their in-boxes at the moment is that of fuel prices.

"I've had abuse shouted at me in the street over this issue," says Harlow MP, .

"It is a sign that we really must do something to help motorists."

Mr Halfon was among a group of MPs from the 1922 committee who raised the issue of fuel with the Prime Minister during a private meeting a few weeks ago.

"He was receptive to what we said," says Mr Halfon. "Now we must wait to see what comes in the budget."

Not content with lobbying the Prime Minister, it seems as if MPs from our region are determined to keep up the pressure whenever they get a chance.

about providing fuel duty relief for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. Many Scottish MPs turned up and so did many from East Anglia. Their message was clear: If Scotland is going to get help, so too should our region.

"There are areas with pockets of social deprivation and low wages, such as the fens", said , the Conservative MP for Peterborough while asking the Treasury minister if, "she and her colleagues will perhaps consider that such areas also require some support and assistance from the Treasury with significant increases in fuel duty, which have an impact on working life there too?".

, the Conservative MP for Mid Norfolk, pointed out that in his constituency, "where I am lucky enough to have four towns, 110 villages and a 130-mile boundary, the rurality is extreme. Fuel currently costs 130p a litre, which means that the average family are paying £70 odd to fill up their car. That is not a matter to be taken lightly... we have a duty to make some gesture towards ameliorating this problem".

Mr Halfon said that if we were to cut the grant paid to Scotland we'd have more money to reduce fuel duty, while said hauliers in his constituency understood, "what the Government needs to do to put the deficit right, but they urge him to do something that was in our manifesto, namely bring forward a stabiliser. They do not understand why we have not done it already".

Replying for the Government, David Gauke acknowledged the level of concern among our MPs but added, "It is right that we must ensure that whatever we do is not only fair, but affordable".

And that could be the sticking point. We understand that ministers are actively considering ways of helping motorists but we've also been told that some Conservatives, not from our region, are telling Mr Cameron that cutting fuel duty would leave a big hole in the Treasury's plans to reduce the budget deficit.

They are also pointing out that compromising on this issue would set a dangerous precedent: if the Government's reacted to the protests of motorists - what about forests and Child Benefit?

It seems clear there will be something for motorists in next month's budget, but perhaps we shouldn't be holding our breath.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

This Saturday 2,000 members of the English Defence League marched through the town of . At the same time around 1,000 members of the Unite Against Fascists group staged a counter demonstration.

Thankfully, it all passed off peacefully due to the 1,800 police officers dragooned from 28 forces around the country, at a cost of £800,000, who marked the demonstrators almost man for man.

Hazel Simmons, the embattled , told me: "It's the result of three months work in the town. It's been extremely difficult here, with the prospect of this march hanging over us.

"We have put a great deal of time and effort into getting groups across Luton to look the other way while this went off. We have been working hard to make sure this passed off peacefully," she says.

And a message from David Cameron wouldn't have gone amiss either.

The Luton demonstration effectively closed the town centre.

On Saturday the Prime Minister criticised "state multiculturalism" in his first and the causes of terrorism.

In , he argued the UK needed a stronger national identity to prevent people turning to all kinds of extremism and he signalled a tougher stance on groups promoting Islamist extremism.

The timing, as the English Defence League, marched through Luton's streets, wasn't appreciated by many in the town.

"A message of support for us here would have been nice," says Hazel Simmons.

"I realise the timing probably couldn't have been helped but it would have been good to have had his good wishes that he hoped it would all go well."

, Conservative MP for North East Bedfordshire and Foreign Office Minister spoke to Downing Street: "They did know about the march and were aware of it but the timing of the speech was arranged a long time before and it simply couldn't be helped."

On the day though, the EDL capitalised on the speech. Its leader, Stephen Lennon, (also known as Tommy Robinson) buoyed up by the prime minister's words: "David Cameron is coming out and saying what we are saying."

Although it did pass off peacefully, the town came to a standstill.

Businesses lost hundreds of thousands of pounds as pubs, restaurants and shops closed.The shopping centre was reduced to a ghost town on what should have been a bustling Saturday, while the taxpayers of Bedfordshire will foot the bill for the police operation.

The real cost, though, may be the damage to Luton's reputation and the social fabric of its diverse community. In a town where 14% of its population are Muslim, EDL banners proclaiming "Islam is evil" and marchers chanting inflammatory slogans as they did this weekend, do nothing for community relations, which are generally regarded as good.

The EDL now says it wants to do it all again in July. So the people of Luton face the prospect of this disruption being repeated in just a few months time.

Freedom of speech is sacrosanct in this country. There is little appetite for curtailing it and the police cannot ban "peaceful protest".

But the Labour MP for Luton South, , does not believe that Luton should have more disruption visited upon it: "The real issue is that Luton's residents are paying an extremely high price for freedom of speech."

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

"It's in recognition of Richard's long commitment to animal welfare in the European Parliament," says David Bowles of the RSPCA.

"It is vital to address animal welfare at a European level as more than 80% of our laws on animals originate in Europe and we look forward to working together in the future to continue to improve animal welfare through the ."

often asks public figures to become Vice Presidents.

It currently has 17 who range from other MPs (Norman Baker and Caroline Lucas) to the astronomer , the Duchess of Hamilton and the Bishop of Monmouth.

Mr Howitt has joined exalted company.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?

Ìý

The A11's going to be dualled... Stansted's second runway has been scrapped... could the next big transport battle in the East be over Norfolk's Fen Line?

The route from Kings Lynn to London takes in Downham Market, Littleport, Ely and Waterbeach, before it gets to Cambridge. The one hour 40 minute service to the capital has a reputation for punctuality and it's one of the reasons why so many commuters have moved into the Fens.

was planning to improve the line by extending the Thameslink network all the way to Kings Lynn. Now it seems that's not going to happen. Thameslink will only go as far as Cambridge.

"The design of the rolling stock offered by the remaining bidders will currently preclude the new Thameslink trains serving stations to Kings Lynn," says the Department of Transport in a statement.

"This is primarily because the power supply on the route to Kings Lynn is not capable of supporting the longer trains and many of the platforms on this route would be too short."

The Government says the number of direct through services between King's Lynn and London will be "similar" to the present set up but MPs along the route fear that without an upgrade the line through Norfolk to Cambridge will become a second rate service.

That could make it prone to cuts in the future, perhaps even bringing an end to direct services.

"I'm sure services will continue, says , the Conservative MP for South West Norfolk. "The question is about the quality of those rail services."

"It's not just about commuters, it's about the economic development of the area. Cambridge is doing very well at the moment, we want to see the economic benefits of this growth go all the way up the line to Kings Lynn."

Another MP, , the MP for North East Cambridgeshire, fears the Thameslink extension has fallen victim to spending cuts.

"The service is planned to stop at Cambridge, yet the cost of electrification beyond there would be £60m to £80m out of a £5.5bn overall cost," he told the House of Commons.

Both MPs have now secured a meeting with the Transport Minister, , to see if there is any way of extending Thameslink to Kings Lynn and making the case for the importance of the Fen Line.

Ìý

Ìý

Ìý

• Bookmark with:
• del.icio.us |
• Digg |
• Reddit
• - What's this?

Local councils in England own £250bn worth of property.

Here's a fact which has amazed many people at Westminster today: local councils in England own £250bn worth of property.

The discovery has been made by , the MP for West Suffolk, who also has the job of being Chairman of the (wait for this) , inquiry into 'rationalising' local government.

For months, the Government has been telling councils that if they look at their costs, it should be possible to cut their budgets without affecting front-line services.

Mr Hancock has discovered that if they look at their property portfolio there is scope for big savings.

In a , endorsed by the Communites Secretary Eric Pickles, he says it should be possible for councils to reduce the space they need by 30% and save £7bn a year.

"We all know that money is tight," says Mr Hancock, "this is a way that councils can save money and if they can do it they won't have to put up council tax or cut services".

One of the most interestings findings of the report is the benefits that can be achieved if public services are provided from the same location.

It cites the example of West Suffolk House in Bury St Edmunds, where the borough council and county council have moved into a new, environmentally-friendly building where they share office space, printers, meeting rooms, IT hardware, a reception and canteen.

Both councils sold several old buildings in the town before moving in.

Overall, they believe the move is saving council tax payers nearly a million pounds a year.

It also mentions how (which owns 2,500 properties - exlcuding council housing - worth £500m) has already found savings of £1.6m by reviewing its portfolio.

The report also suggests that councils consider sharing their premises with other public and voluntary organisations.

This is what is starting to do and it expects to make savings of between 15 and 20%.

Among other suggestions made by Mr Hancock: councils should start to share their administrative services with other authorities like finance, human resourecs and internal audit.

This is what and are doing and £1.6m of savings have already been identified for this year alone. In six years time the councils expect to be saving at least £3.6m a year.

And it's also suggested that councils think about making more use of sharing pool cars.

Critics of the cuts will say that this is all easier said than done, that it takes time to plan new buildings and organise moves.

But Mr Hancock believes it's worth the hassle in return for the substantial savings which can be made.

The Government agrees: his report will be quoted at length by Ministers to any council that complains that it's finding it hard to protect front-line services.

• Bookmark with:
• |
• |
• - What's this?