A MESSAGE FROM COUNCILLOR Mrs. JOAN SPIERS
Well, as I predicted at your last AGM this year has indeed been very difficult. However, despite the difficulties, R&B are not increasing your Council Tax. This is the first time the Council has ever managed this in its history.
Your services will remain at the same level or in some areas improve. The savings have been achieved with a pay freeze for officers and councillors alike and the end of unfair "extras" for some staff. We have aimed to make a level playing field for everyone. Each manager was tasked with budget savings, presenting that work to their director, the portfolio holder, my deputy and me. Each saving was careful assessed by that panel, and some were rejected, and others added. In all we saved £2m.
I promised that we, the Council, would do all in our power to get Waitrose up and running as soon as possible. We did, working closely with the store and its staff. It opened on time in November to the great relief of other shopkeepers and residents.
We kept our promise to Horley residents. After much effort, we came to an agreement with SCC (mainly thanks to Michael Gosling) and purchased the land to build the leisure centre and pool. The plans are coming along very well, and will soon be ready to go to committee for approval.
At the Christmas Council meeting Nigel Clifford, our Chief Executive, announced his intention to retire after the elections in May. He will be 60 years old then and entitled to retire on a full pension. He has been with the Council for 35 years and held many posts. We are currently advertising for a new Chief Executive, and hope to start interviews within a month. Great care will be taken to make sure that we employ the right person to carry this Council forward on our next phase.
We are looking at Alternative Delivery for our services. As yet we are just investigating and no decisions have been taken.
We have had a very hard winter, which resulted in some dissatisfaction with service delivery. I am setting up a small working party with your officers to try to ensure that things are better next year.
I give a solemn promise that although we shall do more recycling, as that is what we have been told residents want, we shall NOT change our food waste collection from a weekly service.
Next year brings new challenges: restructuring of the Council, changes in the way we do business, just like the private sector. We shall rise to the changes, and I will endeavour to see that you get better services for your money.
Cllr. Mrs Joan Spiers is our member for Kingswood with Burgh Heath and Leader of the Council.
She may be contacted by e-
Click here to read Councillor Mrs Joan Spiers 2009 and 2008 messages.