Monday, December 14, 2009

Council 'Adequate'

Which actually means pretty pisspoor in bureaucracyspeak. This seems to have slipped through the Thanet blogosphere unnoticed, but a new report last week by the Audit Commission, the government's government watchdog, and other major stakeholders (dreadful term, only appropriate for Dracula movies IMO) rated our beloved duffers in Cecil Square as performing merely 'adequately'.

By contrast Kent Cunty Cuncil (--ps, the '-' seems t- have g-ne -n my keyb-rd f-r a m-ment there) was rated as performing 'excellently'. Both are Tory strongholds. So how come their performance is drastically different? There's only one way to find out.... FIGHT!!!!!

Click here to read Audit Commission story on Gazunder website
Click here to read Audit Commission report on Thanet Council

Update: That ruddy faced man from KCC is due to attend a business breakfast at the Pegwell Bay Hotel on Thursday, although he has a habit of no-showing if it involves anything east of Canterbury. Perhaps some of you good taxpayers might like to bowl up and ask him what chance now of getting our £50m plus interest back from Iceland?!!?!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!

Apparently TDC is looked upon with derision by KCC members (and that is not a typing error!)

Anonymous said...

What do you know? KCC having told us they will get back 93% of the £50 millions of our money they deposited with Icelandic banks are now not so sure. One of the banks with £15 millions of our money tells them they are not a preferred creditor. So far they have got £3 millions back. Take this away from the £10 millions of lost interest and we are still down by £57 millions not just the initial deposits. Happy Xmas to all at KCC finanance department, may they enjoy their bonuses. Maybe just maybe KCC leaders at some time will apologise to Kent taxpayers for there negligence or what ever they want to call it!

Anonymous said...

Would have gone for 'their négligée's' myself. Just as illiterate, but grammatically correcter.

Anonymous said...

£10 million(s)interest on £50 million(s)? Well done KCC, trebles all round.

Anonymous said...

Typical of TDC to put out a self-promoting and completely inaccurate press release with selected quotes from the Audit Commission report. This my friends is precisely the reason why they are, and always have been, rubbish. How about just for once trying to learn something from these reports, taking it on the chin and promising to improve ? Oh no, we get a complete tirade of how great they are before the word "adequate" is even mentioned.

Please, please, please let Canterbury Council take us over sooner rather than later.

Anonymous said...

Funny an audit report doesn't say anything about a building purchased for £4 million and now only worth £2 million, and gives finance an adequate score. Down to a director of finance spending more time at home (working of course) than in Thanet.

Anonymous said...

ECR have you received thro the post the glossy brochure asking us how £1.8 million of cuts should be directed? Imagine the cost of such an exercise - now if the local TDC ruling councillors were in tune with residents they would already know from speaking to them what they considered important to retain and where the cuts should be made!
Benefits advice was top of the list! review staff terms and conditions reduce the cost of supporting council political representatives - perhaps they think they would like to silence their critics!

Anonymous said...

Ruddy faced man given all KCC employees an extra days holiday next year for the good performance in the Councy council league tables.
My son finishes school a day earlier in the summer! Alright for some!

Anonymous said...

Be afraid, be very afraid - the EKJAP cometh - and right soon?

Anonymous said...

Given that if KCC does recover the deposited money it will come back in dribs and drabs over at least a 5 year period the lost interest will be at least £10 millions. To-date it must be at least £4 millions with interest rates of at least 6% when the money was deposited.
With KCC starting to lay off staff such as librarians and receptionists the lost money would have saved a lot of jobs. Remember this is the council that boasts of the creation of 10 jobs in the media by paying £600,000 to keep Kent TV running.

Anonymous said...

TDC is a disaster and has been so for many years. However, it's our fault. Yes, you heard me correctly. We, the electorate are responsible. We have voted in one party after the other and neither has done us any good at all. We, the electorate need to back decent hard-working candidates who are not beholden to a party. Genuinely independent candidates (not Tories in independent clothes) hold the key to a change in Thanet. If we could elect sufficient genuinely independent candidates to hold the balance of power we could effect real change.

Anonymous said...

couldnt agree more with 5.46 it needs independant free thinking people with no particular party affliation just want to do their best for thanet. To be fair the labour party seem to have the future of Thanet at heart more than the tories!

Anonymous said...

Until Thanet elects people who do not conduct council matters with one trouser leg rolled up whilst in the East Kent Lodge then we get what we deserve!

Vote Thanet Politicians and you get:
Croyism and Corruption.

Look at the planning Committee for starters!

Anonymous said...

Does anyone happen to know how many Thanet councillors are 'on the level'?