Islington - James Kempton needs to be told people are not so gullible

This week the Tribune has an article about Islington Council's budget proposal and their plans for council tax.

It’s your choice (but will they listen to what you say?

The council leader James Kempton is asking people to write in or email their thoughts about Council Tax - should it be frozen or increased. At first glance most people given the choice would say freeze the council tax. This is the option the LibDem administration are hoping will get the majority support.

The carefully calculated alternative Islington budget worked out by by all the other councillors is to slightly raise council tax for a specific purpose - free school meals for primary school children and a £100 rebate for pensioners. In these austere times, what a wonderful proposal for the children and pensioners in Islington. I can't imagine any council tax payer objecting to an increase if the additional income is set aside specifically for the purpose intended.

Free school meals would save families money: as well as being beneficial in itself in terms of assisting learning, healthier eating and children learning good habits of sitting down for a meal in primary school.

Most pensioners are suffering due to rising fuel bills and a drop in savings income. Many don't even have savings and pensioner poverty is fast becoming a national disgrace.

We can all appreciate the cost implications but several millions have already been identified in savings so with the additional source of funding from council tax the plan seems workable. Better to spend the money on something that will have some real benefit to those that need it now.

The article in the Tribune is slightly misleading. It reads as if the LibDem administration have an alternative proposal and are willing to listen to peoples opinions. I doubt it very much. It's obviously a pre-election ploy for the European elections next May - we'll soon start seeing election leaflets boasting about how much savings the Islington council has made and how they have frozen council tax when other councils are raising it.

It's glaringly obvious otherwise why at the full Council meeting on 26 February, the LibDem councillors won't have a free vote over the issue? It's hard to accept that they all plan to vote against the alternative package. Why can't all councillors across party lines for once set aside their political differences and vote YES to the alternative plan for the real benefit of Islington residents who in these tough economic times need all the financial help they can get. Come off it James people are not that gullible, who cares about savings and all that when they need help now!