Mike Cox's Leaders Column February 2010

7.00.00am GMT Wed 24th Feb 2010

The Leader of Hillingdon Council has stated he doesn't give "a Monkey's Uncle" for official statistics and and performance guidelines. "In Hillingdon, residents views always come first" he proudly proclaims. Well maybe not when it comes to important matters.

Ruislip Lido and the surrounding ancient woodlands are a special place which as Hillingdon residents we must treasure. At the instigation of a number of local residents a Management Advisory Group was set up to advise on how it should be maintained. The Leader (is it me or does that not sound like a North Korean dictator?) recently popped up (just before an election) at one of its meetings with a grand plan to spend a lots of our money to redevelop the popular beauty spot. If residents views really came first, shouldn't he be asking what residents would like from the beginning? - not after plans have already been drawn up. When challenged by concerned residents they get rebuked by claims that "We don't HAVE to consult you know!". Is this really putting residents first?

Thanks to the government's spending plans to build schools for "the 21st Century", Abbotsfield and Swakeleys schools are to be rebuilt and a new primary school placed on the same site. Great news for future school children, but potentially creating significant short term and possibly long term problems for local residents. So what has Hillingdon Council done to consult as widely as possible? Well the Council sneaked the plans onto the planning list in the period between Christmas and the New Year. They waited until the last possible minute before sending letters to local residents giving them the least amount of time to respond in time for a planning meeting which takes place in the middle of half term. Thanks to eagle eyed residents this item had to be deferred but is this really putting residents first?

We will shortly be hearing how marvellously efficient Hillingdon has been that we can commit to a 0% Council tax increase (actually to date every Council in London bar one is doing the same), but this is only after slashing £8m (the equivalent of an 8% Council tax increase) from budgets ranging from Disabled Children to Carers. £161,000 being deducted from the Road Maintenance programme - "What they give with one hand, they take away with the other".

It's true then, the Conservative leadership of Hillingdon really doesn't give "a Monkey's Uncle"! ... but maybe it is for those less fortunate that they really don't give " a Monkey's Uncle" about.