Council is criticised for 'crazy' cuts in roads budget
PLANS to further cut the budget for maintaining Derbyshire's roads have been branded "crazy" by the county council's opposition Labour group.
The Conservative-led authority is proposing to spend nearly £2 million less on road repairs this year to help offset the impact of Government cuts.
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Labour group leader county councillor Anne Western.
But Labour group leader councillor Anne Western said it was the wrong move.
She said: "The latest cut brings the total taken out of this budget to over £5 million in four years. This equates to a cut of 32%. In addition to this, they reduced the winter gritting budget by £1m.
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"This is despite the Conservative manifesto of 2009 promising to 'seek more external funding to make capital investment in new roads, provide more efficient investment in road maintenance'.
"The people of Derbyshire have been let down by this Tory administration. They have put Derbyshire on the road to nowhere.
"Cutting back on road maintenance when the roads are in such a poor state is crazy. Reducing the winter gritting budget by £1m was absolutely ridiculous, given the bad winters we've had.
"A Labour-controlled council would put back the £1million the Tories stole from the gritting budget and put some emergency funding into road repairs this summer."
Councillor Simon Spencer, cabinet member for highways, hit back. He said: "Services are not purely about how much money you throw at it, it's about how the money is used and our approach has been praised by the chairman of the Health and Safety Executive.
"We hear a lot of rhetoric from Councillor Western as to what we shouldn't be doing, but we've not heard anything about what Labour would cut instead."
Comments
by Philanthropic
Monday, February 04 2013, 11:57AM
“Well Mr Spencer, as you suggest it's not how much you spend, it's the outcome of what you spend. If you are saying that there will be no increased deterioration in the county's roads and that our attrocious roads will be improved through this 'reduced' budget spending, then you should resign your position with immediate effect. You should resign on the principle that if you stand by your rediculous 'statement', then why have you not cut the road maintenance budget by £2 million before now. You must think we are all stupid to think we will swallow your tripe. This is a classic example of why you failed so pathetically in your attempt to become the new PCC. Thank the lord the ordinary people of Derbyshire are not quite as gullable and stupid as you think.”