Local Politics
Author
Discussion

elster

Original Poster:

17,517 posts

240 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
If you could be a councillor, what changes or impact would you like to make on your area?

For me a few ideas:
  • Sort traffic problems to make sure it runs a lot smoother, even just simple traffic light phase alterations would work near me.
  • Get a wider variety of local businesses to give work experience, rather than the usual lot, to encourage ambition.
  • Improve communication with the 20-30s generation, who don't get involved as they feel their voice wont be heard
  • Encourage businesses in the area to use less packaging or at least reusable, so less waste and less hassle of the silly recycling system at the moment.
  • Encourage start ups to fill empty units by giving relief on rates.



Edited by elster on Saturday 19th June 03:08


Edited by elster on Saturday 19th June 03:14

DieselGriff

5,160 posts

289 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
I'd remove parking charges from the local town and improve access for cars.
Reduce business rates to try and fill up unused shops and units.
As above I'd give incentives for start ups such as tax relief.
I'd push for more police to be on the beat (May be difficult with national policies as they are).

NoelWatson

11,710 posts

272 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
DieselGriff said:
I'd remove parking charges from the local town
http://www.spectator.co.uk/essays/all/628846/part_3/why-im-standing-to-be-a-local-councillor.thtml

elster

Original Poster:

17,517 posts

240 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
NoelWatson said:
DieselGriff said:
I'd remove parking charges from the local town
http://www.spectator.co.uk/essays/all/628846/part_3/why-im-standing-to-be-a-local-councillor.thtml
The usual reason for parking charges being so militantly enforced and high is the council usually has a hole to fill, so needs the extra cash.

Poor bookkeeping in my eyes.

As for the links on how to become a councillor, thanks but was more looking into other peoples ideas on what they would want to change in their local area. Obviously each area is different.

Mojooo

13,291 posts

210 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
removing parking fees will probabyl remove a large chunk of revenue

KANEIT

2,856 posts

249 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
Build more reasonably priced houses for genuine, hardworking, but moderately paid people as the house price to earnings ratio round here is daft. It would be good to channel some money away from the housing cartels by freeing up a little more of people's income which can then be spent elsewhere in the economy. There are many nimbys one would have to fight though.

EDLT

15,421 posts

236 months

Saturday 19th June 2010
quotequote all
Allow Aldi to bulldoze the soon to be empty listed building (currently a failing pub) and the st-tip wasteland that surrounds it and build a supermarket that thousands of people actually want.

rypt

2,548 posts

220 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
Mojooo said:
removing parking fees will probabyl remove a large chunk of revenue
Money that could easily be saved by not resurfacing the same road 5 times in 5 years because each time you use a surface that is crap and breaks up after only 3 months of us

Mojooo

13,291 posts

210 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
rypt said:
Mojooo said:
removing parking fees will probabyl remove a large chunk of revenue
Money that could easily be saved by not resurfacing the same road 5 times in 5 years because each time you use a surface that is crap and breaks up after only 3 months of us
money that wouldnt even be there without parking fees and fines !

thinfourth2

32,414 posts

234 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
EDLT said:
Allow Aldi to bulldoze the soon to be empty listed building (currently a failing pub) and the st-tip wasteland that surrounds it and build a supermarket that thousands of people actually want.
I'd ensure Aldi can't bulldoze a listed building and replace it with a standard retail box

I'd let Aldi gut and extend the building with a damn good architect and make it a part of a non standard retail unit

don4l

10,058 posts

206 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
rypt said:
Mojooo said:
removing parking fees will probabyl remove a large chunk of revenue
Money that could easily be saved by not resurfacing the same road 5 times in 5 years because each time you use a surface that is crap and breaks up after only 3 months of us
Last year, our council did the same stretch of road twice in just 10 days.

The first effort didn't even last a day!!

Then they painted the entrances to a roundabout green and a few weeks later changed it to red.


Every year they add more double yellows, and the local town is now dying.

Local councils seem to be populated with vegan cyclists who think that they are doing good (and relatives/friends of property developers!).

Don
--

rypt

2,548 posts

220 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
don4l said:
rypt said:
Mojooo said:
removing parking fees will probabyl remove a large chunk of revenue
Money that could easily be saved by not resurfacing the same road 5 times in 5 years because each time you use a surface that is crap and breaks up after only 3 months of us
Last year, our council did the same stretch of road twice in just 10 days.

The first effort didn't even last a day!!

Then they painted the entrances to a roundabout green and a few weeks later changed it to red.


Every year they add more double yellows, and the local town is now dying.

Local councils seem to be populated with vegan cyclists who think that they are doing good (and relatives/friends of property developers!).

Don
--
I live around Oxford, NO council can be WORSE than the Oxford one

grumbledoak

32,571 posts

263 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
I think there is a training course. Quite possibly involving monkeys, bananas, and hose pipes. Once suitably 'educated' you'll just get on with strangling all life out of the town and burying any remaining business in red tape and petty regulations.

grumbledoak

32,571 posts

263 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
Needless to say, this is rather toungue-in-cheek.

Forget public funding, go ahead and pretend you are a private enterprise. Risk your budget in dodgy countries and ventures. Try opening a Spa like that silly tart in Bath did. It is your money, really.

Totally disregard the state of the roads in your area. It's not like you are paid to look after them.

Foster a completely incomprehensible waste 'recycling' scheme, so you can fine people left, right, and centre for non-compliance.

Rip up those Old School 'Zebra' crossings and install traffic lights. Make sure the sparky gives the control box a good hammering before he leaves, so the lights endlessly cycle into red.

Install ever more metal railings wherever the public want to cross the road. They don't know what's good for them, and anyway the railings make an excellent 'partner' for squashing cyclists.

Don't allow anyone to park anywhere. Raise charges and fines; somebody's pension is relying on these, and if not it can always pay for an empty bus to drive around the town.

Pay a 'charity' to campaign for a continental-style Communist Bicycles scheme. They only cost £1,500 per bike per year, and it's not like it is your money.



All real. And I could probably 'be back' with more.

DangerousMike

11,327 posts

222 months

Sunday 20th June 2010
quotequote all
do as much as i can to discourage stupid identikit replica houses built in pidgeon-victorian style and encourage new and interesting architecture.

Halb

53,012 posts

213 months

Monday 21st June 2010
quotequote all
I tried for local council once. Was pipped to the post by a small margin by the incumbent Labour bod.
I would have looked at what the council actually spend it's money on, and then looked at how to cut and redistribute.

StevieBee

15,379 posts

285 months

Monday 21st June 2010
quotequote all
elster said:
Improve communication with the 20-30s generation, who don't get involved as they feel their voice wont be heard
This is key. The average council provides over 40 key services yet there are few who'd be able to name more than half a dozen. Also, people need to know how councils work and what level of power they have.

elster said:
Encourage businesses in the area to use less packaging or at least reusable, so less waste and less hassle of the silly recycling system at the moment
Unless the council happens to have the head office of Coca Cola or Tesco in it's patch, then there's not much they can do other than to lobby the government - which is being done.


Beyond that, I'd make the council more commercial and give some power to the non-elected managers.




JB!

5,255 posts

210 months

Monday 21st June 2010
quotequote all
finish building the MK grid roads and enforce their continued building with the expansion.

resurface the roads properly.

scrap crap traffic furniture and bus lanes

imporve redways and underpasses for cyclists/pedestrians

re-open castlethorpe railway station.

planned bus routes along the grid-roads.

pmanson

13,388 posts

283 months

Monday 21st June 2010
quotequote all
JB! said:
finish building the MK grid roads and enforce their continued building with the expansion.

resurface the roads properly.

scrap crap traffic furniture and bus lanes

imporve redways and underpasses for cyclists/pedestrians

re-open castlethorpe railway station.

planned bus routes along the grid-roads.
That would be nice. Instead they seem intent of reducing the speed limit to 50mph as pcensoredd up locals try crossing the road in silly places at night, wearing dark clothing and then wonder why they get run over.