Comment: 14.5 million reasons...

Recently a group, askthepeopleofmanchester formed in reaction to a news item that came out of Manchester City Council.

At a committee meeting the Council announced that its investment in Manchester Airport had yielded a windfall of 14.5 million pounds that they could spend as they like.

What are they proposing to do?

1. Put the money into the ‘Green and Clean Initiative’, the focus of which is NOT reducing climate change OR pollution levels. It is to run activities that improve the ‘perception’ of visitors and cleanliness of the city in line with Manchester aspirations to be a ‘Global City’.  
2. Put the decision on how to spend the whole £14.5 million in the hands of the Chief Executive, Howard Bernstein (in ‘consultation’ with others)

It’s nonsense.

For the last 3 years, Manchester City Council has been complainingthat the cuts to services have been forced on them by the Government and there has been no choice in decisions it had to make.

Now it HAS some money its choosing NOT to look at saving those services, services which help the people of Manchester.

What would we do? A number of things including

• Keep open the libraries and swimming pools that people have campaigned
• Create a fund for people affected by the bedroom tax to prevent evictions
• Look at pilot projects that support the employment of young people in Manchester
• Improve and extend Manchester cycle lanes
• Create a fund for small social enterprises and voluntary sector organisations offering up to 20% matched funding for grants or contracts that offers a public service to the people of the city
• Invest in proper ‘joined-up-thinking’ planning, education and activities that reduce the climate change emissions and pollution in the city.

There are also a range of things that can be done around the food banks, investing in start-up microbusinesses and child poverty.

But really, who is to blame for this proposal being considered at the full Council meeting on October 9^th?

Manchester’s Labour councillors. As a group.

They were the one’s wringing their hands saying ‘its not our fault’ when the cuts were happening and now they actually have a chance to do something about it, they are silent.

Manchester has had enough of them.

What can you do?

1. Signthe petition TODAY!!!  Askthepeopleofmanchester are a campaign worth following
2. Contact Manchester councillors, ask them why they are supporting this proposal
3. VOTE!!!

In Manchester Labour councillors only seem to react if they think their seats might be threatened. OnThursday October 10th, is the Ancoats and Clayton by-election.

Of course, we are asking people to voteGreen Party or if you can’t vote get in touch to help out.

There are 14.5 million reasons to do so.

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Comment: Manchester City Council voting for Christmas

Wednesday is the meeting of Manchester City Council’s Executive where the Budget cuts 2013-15 will be discussed.

More precisely its Wednesday 13 February 2013 Time: 10.00 am  Venue: Committee Room 11, Level 1, Town Hall.

The Green Party is going along. We are interested to see what they have to say about the cuts in services particularly with regard to libraries and swimming pools.  

The Council says that those swimming pools and libraries services under threat are going to come back in a few years.

We don’t believe it.  

Those facilities are not coming back in any recognizable form.

Why are we so sceptical?  Because of something the council writes in its own Budget Response Document 2013/15. In it (point 51), the council asks its officers to “analyse the Council’s budget position beyond 2014/15 given that funding is expected to fall whilst demand for services will continue to rise “.

That analyse predicts that by 2018/19 the only services that will be able to be funded by the council will be Social Care, Environment, Transport and Capital.

That means that Neighbourhood Services, which includes libraries, swimming pools, culture and parks will be completely cut. So how are those pools and libraries going to be run?

That prediction is only 5 years away.

Instead of engaging with local communities concerned about their parks, pools and libraries, those campaigners are dismissed as “a handful of noisy protesters”, their activities as ‘stunts’. Attempts by communities to engage the council on talks to take over buildings or services, such as in Hulme, have met with silence.

Local Labour councillors will throw their hands in the air and say that there is nothing they can do, they have to vote for the cuts.

Don’t you believe it.

Labour councillors from all over the country are organising against the cuts. The Labour Councillors against the cuts website lists an initial 25 councillors who are not prepared to vote for cuts to local services.

Manchester Green Party applauds their stand. That is principle.

Its unfortunate that  not a single one of the 86 Manchester Labour councillors is on that list. We predict you won’t find one in the future either.

The Budget response (60) also says “Only the Council has the leadership capacity to protect the City's future, and chart a new direction”.

They may have the capacity, they don’t have the ideas.

If you don’t believe us, go to the committee meeting on Wednesday.

The Green Party.

Follow us

Online: http://www.manchestergreenparty.org.uk/

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Manchester-Green-Party/137183923032147

Twitter:  @McrGreenParty

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