As part of £1.4million cuts to its core Health Improvement Service (HIS), Salford Council will next week rubber stamp proposals to axe support for community events in the city.
Despite a majority of those consulted disagreeing with the Council cut, the budget report states: "Whilst we acknowledge the importance of events to communities, our support for them does not form part of the statutory obligations of the Council". Instead, residents will have to do-it-themselves... "advice and guidance on running community events will be available through online toolkits, through other stakeholders or directly from the HIS itself...".
While community events face cuts, £600 per ticket developer events in London are very much okay. Last month, Salford Council sent two of its staff down to MIPIM, a huge property orgy, where it shared a stall with Peel Holdings and other property developers that have avoided paying £millions in planning fees.
As well as Peel (Peel Land and Property [Ports]), Capital and Centric, which avoided almost £100,000 in planning fees in Ordsall, was on the stall and Renaker, whose off-shoot, WB Developments (Salford) Ltd, avoided almost £2million in planning fees on its huge blocks of flats at the back of Regent Road retail centre.*
Appearing at the property beano cost Salford council tax payers a total of £3,650 - £2,250 towards the stall; and £1,400 for travel, accommodation and expenses for the two staff.
The costs have been revealed from a Salford Star Freedom of Information request, to which the Council added...
"Salford was represented on the Manchester/Liverpool stand along with five other Greater Manchester Local Authorities. Contact was made in particular with the China delegation plus developers and investors. Projects such as the £700million investment in Middlewood Locks and the RHS Bridgewater 5th national garden were finalised at MIPIM UK along with other commercial and frontline projects. These all bring investment into Salford which will create jobs and support the continued growth of the economy in Salford..."
Talks at side meetings at MIPIM included The Rise of Private Rented Sector and London: From Social Housing to Super-Prime, while outside the Olympia venue, Radical Housing Network, Defend Council Housing and a range of other groups held a protest titled Cities for People not for Profit...
*For full details see previous Salford Star article, Salford Council appears at MIPIM property orgy – click here.
Graphic by Jamie Reid
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