I think it would be helpful for you to read the Budget Speech which Councillor Roy Fisher made to the Council at its Council Tax fixing meeting on 23 February 2007.  It describes progress so far in Labour's Plans for Blackpool's regeneration and what is to happen in the coming months.

"Mr Mayor,
 
"Before starting, I would like once again to thank the Director of Finance and the Strategic Director of Business Services and all their staff for their professional and hard work in ensuring we have been able to understand and make sensible responses to a complex and difficult budget.

"Knowing that this is the last budget that Mike Hanson will have helped put together I am sure the whole Council would join me in thanking him for the professionalism, dedication, patience and good humour that he has brought each year to the budget process.

"My thanks go also to my fellow Labour Councillors for their support in producing this the 16^th Labour budget since the people of Blackpool first elected a Labour administration.

"Once more I am able to present a budget, which not only consolidates the considerable progress we have made over the last few years but also crucially continues our investment in the people of Blackpool.

"I am delighted therefore to commend to the Council a budget designed to tackle the real issues facing Blackpool and meeting the needs of our communities. I can do this not through accident or fortune but because we have consistently set budgets which take a long view and not determined by short term political expediency. A budget determined by the needs of Blackpool and its people. A difficult budget which would have been much more so if not for a Labour government that has injected significant resource into our key public services.

"We have created a platform for sound finances, our schools have never been better funded and through Building Schools for the Future we will see over £75 million invested in our secondary schools over the next few years.

"We have opened new leisure facilities and new libraries

"We are able to begin the long process of transforming Blackpool through the implementation of the Council’s ambitious Masterplan and our programme of neighbourhood improvements.

"We do this not for its own sake but because by this we will transform the economy providing good well paid jobs through which, with access to skills, training and employment and investment in our communities, we will make Blackpool again a great place to live for all our people.

"The recommendation of the Casino Advisory Panel was a blow. They got it badly wrong - how could they say nothing has happened for the last 6 years and how dare they say we should accept and manage contraction for our great town. We at least have not yet given up on the fight. But I would like to take some time to remind the Council what we have already achieved and what we will be doing over the next few years as a consequence of our Masterplan:

• last summer saw the opening of the George Bancroft Park, the first phase of the Central Gateway project and Blackpool’s first new park for over 80 years, the second and third phases will follow over the next few years;

• by disposing of Blackpool Zoo we have enabled up to £10 million of investment which has seen a 17% increase in visitor numbers;

• the Council, after taking back control of the Sandcastle, invested £5 million which has seen income and visitor numbers rise and the Sandcastle / Waterworld being recognised by the worlds Water Park Association for outstanding achievements in 2006 with the world’s longest indoor water roller coaster ride;

• we have continued the wonderful improvements along the New South Promenade;

• the new Houndshill Phase 1 is well underway bringing back a Department Store to Blackpool - and can I remind everyone that it was under a Conservative Council that Blackpool lost its last Department store;
• we are in the final stages of selecting our preferred developer to partner the Council in the creation of a new civic and retail centre around North Station which will bring in 100s of millions of pounds of new investment into Blackpool;

• next Christmas will see the first part of our £2.5 million Regeneration by Light European funded project introducing a brand new fantastically exciting illumination experience into Blackpool;

• this year we secured approval of £12 million to invest in our Tramway as the first Phase of our proposal for a complete overhaul of the Tramway - and in fact, since Labour came into power, we have invested more in our trams than the previous 100 years of Tory under-investment;

• the reshaping of Blackpool’s seafront is well underway, boosted by Regional Development Agency and European money we will see Britain’s most exciting seafront and if we are successful with the People’s Playground Living Landmarks Lottery Bid we will truly have a magical place to visit;

• through Blackpool’s Urban Regeneration Company - ReBlackpool - there will be around £60 million invested in regenerating our resort over 4 years. A URC which would not have existed without the Casino based Masterplan;

• in addition, I can confidently expect £1 million a year for the next 3 years to add to the £150,000 we are including in our budget to fund the biggest, best and most exciting series of festivals and events that Blackpool has ever seen;

• we have submitted our Business Plan to invest around £50 million in our Council housing, an average of over £8,000 per house, at no cost to either our tenants or Council Tax payers. I am confident that in the next few weeks our tenants will get confirmation that this has been successful;

• the restoration of Stanley Park is well underway;
• investment in our roads and footpaths and in road safety continues apace;

• in total we will see over £250 million of capital investment in Blackpool over the next three years.

"Blackpool was created through the creativity and effort of individual entrepreneurs and if we are to achieve our ambition we will need to unlock this creativity and entrepreneurship, which is why I was particularly pleased we were successful in winning £10.8 million of Local Enterprise Growth Initiative money to allow us to do precisely that. Yet another example of the resources we have and are continuing to bring into Blackpool.

"However, in proposing that the Council accepts the Executive’s recommendation, I would like to restate this year as I have for the last few years our continued opposition to a system which results in a one percent increase in expenditure, not met by grant, translating into a three percent increase in Council Tax - a system that only crudely reflects ability to pay. One that this Labour government has decided to address and I await with interest the outcome of the Lyons review. We will continue to argue for the return of more control of finance to local people which at the same time better reflects the ability to pay.

"Our budget will maintain the strong financial foundations for the Council and enable ongoing investment in services for the people we are here to represent. To minimise the impact on the Council Tax payers of Blackpool we have made significant efficiency savings of over 3% a year – the most the officers could recommend without significant cuts in services and jobs and being prudent in our approach to the Council’s overall finances.

"Indeed this year, in order to balance investment in key priorities whilst minimising the impact on the Council Tax payer, we are setting very challenging targets for the officers. These will involve reducing costs and improving value for money through a series of Strategic reviews. I await with interest what others may propose because whether it is the cost of telephones, agency staff, overtime, use of consultants etc these are included already in our efficiency programmes.

"Moreover, through our innovative approach to shared services with neighbouring Councils or traded services with others, we will benefit Blackpool Council to the tune of up to £500,000 per annum.

"I know that despite the major progress we have made over the last few years in improving the quality of our services, we have a long way to go before my Group will be satisfied.

"For the second year running we saw an increase in results at Key Stage 4 in terms of good GCSEs, the biggest improvement in Blackpool’s history - but it still falls well short of where our young people deserve to be.

"We will not allow our challenge to produce efficiency savings and cost reductions to be used as an excuse to see any reduction on our aspirations in this or any other key area.

"This year, therefore, we are proposing a Council Tax increase of 4.3%, which will enable us:

• to meet inflationary increases in costs out of our control;

• to meet our obligations under the national equal pay agreement, which will see our lowest paid - mainly female workers - benefit;

• to continue with free bus and tram travel for our pensioners and people with disabilities within the boundaries of Blackpool and pay just 50p fare to travel to the rest of Lancashire. Next year will see free bus travel over the whole of Lancashire.

• to support our regeneration plans and meet the significantly additional and growing costs of waste collection and disposal - costs, which by the way would be considerably higher if it wasn’t for our success in meeting extremely challenging and increasing recycling targets;

• to shelter our services for vulnerable children and adults from the impact caused by growing demand pressures and our drive to reduce costs in this area;

• to see above-inflation increases for our schools;

• to develop new services for the elderly;

• to improve our parks;

• to support our PFI for street lighting which will see the replacement of worn out street lighting and new street lighting on backstreets – continuing our progress in making Blackpool a safer place to live. And with domestic burglaries at a 30 year low what fantastic progress we have already made;

• to ensure the Council’s balances are sufficient to deal with any unforeseen events.

"In other words we are taking the sensible long-term view, which will see a steady investment in public services matched by a downward trend in levels of Council Tax.

"I am particularly pleased to announce to Council that our steady improvements have been recognised by the Audit Commission as they assess Blackpool as Improving Strongly, the top rating and as a 3 star authority, just one rating off the top.

"I have great pleasure in recommending to this Council a budget, which enables us to continue our improvements and developments in service provision - improvements demanded and expected by the people and being delivered.

"I now come on to how our budget deals with Council tenants.

"Throughout this year we have been able to continue improvements to the stock. These improvements will continue and accelerate next year with a 4.5% increase in rents. Our efficient and effective management of housing will see affordable rents and continuing improvements. I am confident we will meet easily the Decent Homes Standard, as required by Government and with the prospect of the additional funding through the ALMO, 2007/8 will see a milestone in the level of investment benefiting our tenants.

"The proposal before Council today fulfils our manifesto promises by:

• securing better public services;
• putting additional real resources into our schools;
• improving our roads and highways;
• protecting our vulnerable young and elderly and enabling us to enhance the quality of the service we provide to the Blackpool public;
• continuing the most sustained and ambitious capital programme in Blackpool’s history and increasingly now our challenge is to the private sector and to ask them to match our ambition and commitment.

"It will enable us to make progress beyond these areas into dealing with creative solutions to Climate Change allowing Blackpool under Labour to become carbon neutral in terms of electricity consumption, as the first part of our strategy to make Blackpool a leading town in the sustainable agenda and the greening of the resort. And through our ambitious active sport programme to become synonymous with sporting excellence.

"Our journey to create a great future for Blackpool through the Council’s ambitious Masterplan has started - it will be long and no doubt with further setbacks but we have made a great start and are simply more determined to overcome any setbacks.

"Only the Labour Group can be relied upon to deliver this ambitious agenda. The Tories would take Blackpool backwards not to a golden part of our history but to a time of massive under-investment in our services, our people and the resort. But at least Peter and his Group, unlike certain members of the Liberal Democrats to my left, support investment in Blackpool.

"They at least have not begged Members of Parliament to direct £450 million of investment to Manchester as has Liberal Councillor Steve Bate, giving his pitch against the Casino's coming to Blackpool when the Casino Advisory Panel met in Blackpool and this last month welcoming its being located at Manchester.  His view is evidently - anywhere but Blackpool. 

"What, I wonder, will the people of Blackpool make when they know what has gone on and still is going on!

"Blackpool’s Council Tax will once again be the lowest in Lancashire – I repeat the lowest in Lancashire - with the average household in Blackpool paying around £935. This will be some £200 less than the neighbouring Conservative controlled Councils of Fylde and Wyre will be charging their residents next year.

"It is a sound and ambitious budget for now and for the future and one I am proud to be able to move.

"I look forward to moving next year's budget.

"I beg to move that the Council Tax be as set out in the tables attached, an increase on last year of 4.3%."

This is a formidable record of achievement and one which all fair-minded Blackpool residents will appreciate and support.
        David Owen
         3 March 2007