After nearly a year in transition, Cumberland Council is now the sole authority. Our communities were left in a good place by the Conservatives in Allerdale. We had good frontline services, a visible council and huge investment in our towns. We brought bin collection back in-house after 25 years of Labour privatisation, we protected weekly bin collections, we took a hard line on unauthorised traveller encampments, and we were dealing with legacy ‘grot spot’ issues. The council worked hand in glove with me to deliver real, tangible change and a lasting legacy. When their backs were against the wall, they made the right decisions for residents.
First impressions are important. For most of us, our first impression of Cumberland Council came in the form of a council tax bill much higher than the last.
Conservatives in Allerdale left a legacy of low council tax - the lowest in the county. Labour’s first act in Cumberland was to increase council tax by 6.7%, the highest increase since the wallet-breaking increases we saw under the last Labour government and now £110/year above the national average. All that hard work undone in one fell swoop.
In 2019 the bin chaos we suffered at the hands of a Labour council, who sought to make swinging cuts, was painful. I’m the son of a bin man, and those men and women do a great job ensuring our refuse is collected every week in all weathers. Labour’s refusal to award equal pay across their council, while rushing to equalise council tax, means that those bin men in Allerdale are paid less than those working in Carlisle or Copeland for the same authority.
We now face the fourth highest increase in council tax in the country, with every council above them being bankrupt. The new council have already asked government permission to borrow to fund day-to-day spending, something that none of their predecessor councils had to do. That will only increase council tax further. That comes alongside the reality that we can’t even guarantee our bins will be emptied.
For residents in Maryport, their first impression of the new council was different. I have been a huge champion of a new swimming pool for Maryport since Labour closed the last. I ensured government support through the Future High Street fund for a new pool at The Wave, recognising the benefits not only to Maryport, but also to surrounding villages. When construction costs increased, good local companies worked to drive down costs and Allerdale Leader Mike Johnson found the extra money. This was a fully funded community project that delivered good local services, local jobs, and public health benefits measured in excess of £10m.
Last week, one of the first decisions that Labour made after Cumberland Council became the decision-maker, was to scrap those pool plans. Putting that £5 million investment at risk was poor judgement on their part. My constituents in Maryport have been hit with a triple whammy. Higher council tax, cancelled bin collections and their local amenities canned.
First impressions matter. You never get another chance to make a first impression. My mailbox tells me that constituents are worried about what is cancelled next? We have all worked hard to ensure that our communities thrive. Basic frontline services and local amenities are important to our towns and villages, and they are essential to ensuring that we can retain talent and create sustainable communities.
Yes, there is a political element to local councils but first and foremost, councillors of all political persuasions should have the interests of their communities at their heart. Communities in my constituency are not pawns with which to score cheap political points. They are families, taxpayers and business leaders wanting to make the place they live cleaner, their high streets more vibrant and create a place that future generations can be proud of.
The first impressions that Workington constituents have had of a Labour-run Cumberland Council cannot be reversed, but the leadership does have control over future decisions. I hope they do the right thing by the communities that they serve, put their petty politics aside, and provide the frontline services and local facilities that our area needs and deserves.
