Conservative-led Council Rejects 22% Pay Increase for Councillors

Conservatives-led Lincolnshire County Council paved the way for an extra extra £250,000 to help community projects after councillors rejected plans to increase their allowances.

A cross-part consensus at Lincolnshire County Council agreed yesterday to forgo a twenty-two point two percent increase, which would have seen allowances for the seventy-seven members rise from £8,184 to £10,000, saving just shy of £140,000 a year.

A further four and a half percent inflationary increase could have swelled this figure by a further £450, but instead a freeze will be implemented until 2013.

Mileage rates will, however, increase in line with H.M. Revenue And Customs' guidance from 40p to 45p a mile.


Cash included in the council's budget for any potential allowances change will be redistributed to help community, voluntary and charitable initiatives. The Conservatives added they would have to be in the 'spirit of the Big Society'.

Yesterday's vote confirmed rumours that the ruling Conservatives were planning to kill off the controversial proposal to increase allowances. The recommendations for an increase were made by an independent panel last year. But there was still an overwhelming sense of unease in the council chamber as councillors faced the prospect of deciding their own pay.

Cllr. Mrs. Christine Talbot, Conservative (Bracebridge Heath Division) led the calls to remove the responsibility from members. She said it was a 'tricky topic' which emerged repeatedly year after year.

"I would like to suggest that because we have had an Independent Remuneration Panel. In future an independent body should be charged with setting the pay and allowances we receive as elected members to avoid any potential conflict of interest."

Councillor Calls for Supermarket Booze Ban

The Lincolnshire Echo is reporting that alcohol should be removed from supermarket shelves in Lincolnshire to help prevent alcohol abuse, a senior Conservative county councillor has claimed.

Cllr. Mrs. Christine Talbot, Conservative (Bracebridge Heath & Waddington) believes a pilot scheme should be tested by supermarkets to see what impact taking booze out of stores would have on drinking habits within the county.

The paper reports that the County Council member has said her personal vision for the next ten years would also include raising the age limit to purchase alcohol from 18 to 21.

Cllr. Mrs. Talbot told the Lincolnshire Echo that action is needed to be taken to change the drinking culture which had developed in recent years.

Cllr. Mrs. Talbot is reported as saying:

"The average adult would go and buy a bottle of wine for the occasion, not buy wine with your shopping. I know it's cheaper to do both but sometimes when you are in the supermarket there is more wine than alcohol."

Cllr. Mrs. Talbot said she was concerned about the trend of 'pre-loading', which involves people drinking large quantities of alcohol at home before going out into pubs and clubs. She added it would be interesting to see if business in pubs improved as a result of any supermarket ban.

"Supermarkets could remove alcohol for a pilot scheme for six months and see how it affected sales.

"I think people would be in uproar and say it is unfair to do this to people who drink responsibly, while others might see it as a good idea."

The Lincolnshire Health Scrutiny Committee, of which Cllr. Mrs. Talbot is Chairman, decided on Wednesday to examine what programmes existed within the county to tackle alcohol abuse and how to understand the contrasting problems between rural and urban areas.
The review is expected to take between six to eight months.

Microbiolgy Services 'Blighted' by Move to Scunthorpe

This Lincolnshire Echo reported yesterday that mislaid samples and delays have blighted the work of hospital staff after microbiology services were moved out of Lincoln, according to former consultant, Dr. Christopher Brightman who has told the paper that it took him

"considerably longer"

to get hold of certain results following the closure of the on-site microbiology laboratory at Lincoln County Hospital.

The service was transferred to Scunthorpe General Hospital by operator Path Links in April, with samples from patients in Lincoln now required to travel more than 27 miles for testing.

Dr. Brightman said he took early retirement from his microbiologist consultant role at Lincoln County Hospital in October, when he felt he could no longer deliver the same 'high standard' of service to his colleagues. Earlier in the month health officials labelled the transfer a success and said turnaround times for samples had become quicker since the move.

However, a source who serves on the Health Scrutiny Committee has reported that at the meeting of the committee the Acting Chief Executive, Mr. Bernard Chalk, was not not expecting to provide a detailed report on the impact of the move, blagged his way through when pressed by Chairman Cllr. Mrs. Christine Talbot, Conservative (Bracebridge Heath and Waddington Division), in spite of the expectations of the committee to the contrary.

Mr. Chalk also told the last Lincolnshire Health Scrutiny Committee the quality of service had improved. However, Dr Brightman, who currently works as a locum general practitioner, said he took exception to that remark.

"I always found my work satisfying and enjoyable.

"We had a happy department and I believe that my colleague, our staff and I provided an excellent service, so I take great exception to the remark that the 'quality of the service has improved', since in my personal opinion that is not the case.

"My plan was to continue to work until I reached retirement age. However, I decided to retire at the end of this October since I did not believe that I could continue to provide a high standard of service to clinical colleagues without a laboratory on site.

"It took considerably longer to obtain results, I could no longer discuss technical problems with my staff, which is important since many results have to be interpreted by experienced technical and medical staff before appropriate advice can be given to clinicians."

Cllr. Mrs. Talbot has reported to me that Mr. Chalk has been invited back to Health Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday, 27th January 2010.

Local County Councillor Appears on BBC's Newsnight

Lincolnshire County Councillor, former Parliamentary Candidate for the Lincoln Constituency in 2001, Cllr. Mrs. Christine Talbot, Conservative (Bracebridge Heath and Waddngton Division) appeared on last night's Newsnight programme on the BBC 2 television channel commenting upon the South West Norfolk Constituency's meeting to deselect Liz Truss who a few weeks ago was selected as their parliamentary candidate.

Introducing the item, iconic Newsnight presenter, Jeremy Paxman, said:

"If someone told you a year ago the greatest challenge to David Cameron's Tory leadership would come from a bunch nick-named the 'turnip taliban' in rural Norfolk, you'd have had trouble being believed.

"Tonight's meeting about whether to de-select Elizabeth Truss as candidate because they didn't know she had an affair with a married Tory MP, Mark Field, a few years ago was surely the most exciting thing to happen in Swaffham since a cardboard box was seen blowing down the High Street.

"In the event a majority backed her, and back down from a confrontation with Mr. Cameron."

After a video package by political correspondent Michael Crick, including footage of Sir Jeremy Bagge - named as leader of the turnip taliban - and the suggestion that if Mrs. Truss was not de-selected he may stand for parliament for a newly created party - Christine Talbot emerged with Sue Catling, a management consultant, Conservative candidate for Calder Valley in 2005 who was de-selected and replaced by Mrs. Truss. Cllr. talbot was asked about the disconnect between the membership of the party and the wider electorate. She responded:

"The problem we face within the party is this centralised control that's going on. And when the rule changed in July that only six candidates could go forward to the selection process it narrowed it down. In the good old days at least twenty went to the first interview and the Association picked those themselves."

Later Cllr. Talbot, responding to criticism of the narrownes of the membership of the Conservative Party says:

"At the end of the day their is a cross section of members in this country which are now in associations they are the people who have got to work with people."

More than two hundred members of South West Norfolk Conservative Association turned-out to participate in the meeting. The final result was 132 for and 37 against keeping Mrs. Truss as the candidate. Speaking following the confirmation of her selection Mrs. Truss said:

"I am absolutely delighted to have been confirmed as the Parliamentary Candidate for South West Norfolk and very much look forward to working with everybody with in the Conservative Association to kick the Labour party out at the election."

Watch the BBC Newsnight's Report on Liz Truss here.