'Talking shop' funds are cut

Northern Echo 11/02/2005

COUNCILS have voted to cut their subscriptions to the "bureaucratic" Yorkshire and Humber Assembly by half.

The decision by the Association of Local Authorities (ALA) means the assembly will lose £750,000.

Harrogate Borough Council leader Mike Gardner welcomed the move.

He said: "We are pleased to have agreed this reduction in our subscription. We believe that the assembly wastes time and money on endless conferences, committees, research initiatives, publications and consultations. The money spent on bureaucracy would be better spent on improving transport and public services."

Richmondshire District Council leader John Blackie also backed the decision.

He said: "The regional assembly has grown too fast for its own good. For Richmondshire, the glossy reports that it produces have virtually no relevance to our district and are heavily dominated by the urban authorities."

It is not thought the move will jeopardise the assembly, which received most of its £4.7m budget for this year from the Government.

The decision was taken after several authorities withdrew from the assembly amid claims it had become a talking shop.

Clive Leach, the deputy chairman of the assembly, said local councils had a vital role to play in the future of the assembly.

He said: "We respect the right of local authorities to review their subscriptions, but we must ensure the excellent partnership working established at a regional level is not lost."

A review will be carried out of how the money given to the assembly by authorities is spent.

ALA chairwoman Margaret Eaton said the lower contributions would ensure local authorities kept their membership. She said: "It is vitally important that the region's local authorities and other partners work together in the best interests of the region."