Government 'indifference' over local councils

The government was being increasingly indifferent to local councils, despite boasting of having set them up, the Opposition spokesman on local councils, Chris Cardona, told parliament yesterday.

He said the government had not come up with any new policy on local government in the Budget. The financial allocation to local councils also reflected the government's indifference. Funding had remained unchanged even where the responsibilities of councils were increasing. Local councils would next year also have to face increased costs, most of which brought about by Budget measures such as the power tariffs.

Indeed, this was the government which last year, without consulting anyone, reduced Lm536,000 from the budget allocation of the councils. Councils which had made commitments with contractors suddenly found they could not afford to pay up. Will the government give an assurance that such a sudden reduction in funds would not happen again? How could they plan ahead otherwise?

Dr Cardona said the government had no idea how councils were to develop in the next 10 years.

There were various new roles which the council could take over to instil social welfare in their locality such as the maintenance of housing estate, better use of schools after school hours and assistance for those seeking a job and a house.

Dr Cardona urged the government to allocate workers from the civil service to the councils. He said the councils should also increasingly work together on a regional basis to reduce costs.

Replying, Nationalist MP Jason Azzopardi said the government was anything but indifferent to local councils.

A series of 31 consultation meetings with councils were held this year and the councils were assisted to access EU funds. The government had transferred to the councils more than 200 employees including 142 former drydocks workers. This saved the councils Lm1.3 million in salaries.

Training programmes were to be held next year for the councillors who had just been elected.

Dr Cardona had complained of inadequate funds, but what would have been the situation had the government accepted the Opposition leader's call to cut its funding by three per cent, or devalue the lira?

Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg said that even though funding may have been slightly reduced, the councils were better off as the government had increased its help in other forms, such as the allocation of workers.

In its first year, the Labour government had reduced the councils subvention by 14 per cent to Lm6.2 million and to Lm5.8 (another six per cent drop) in the second year.