PRESS RELEASE: Keep on Telling the Council You Care

BAG Chair Sue Arnell presents Clr
Bob Bibby the petitions

The people of Bury have told the Council they do care who delivers their services – and trust council employees rather than outsiders. That is the message Bury Action Group have delivered to the Leader of the Council.

Councillor Bibby reportedly said that people in Bury did not care who collected their bins. His ‘transformation strategy’ included the assumption ‘that the council will not directly deliver services’. A paltry three week public consultation on the strategy included no public meetings and required members of the public to access the Council website to participate.

There was a huge positive response to our petition saying council services were ‘not for sale’. In six hours standing near the Millgate Centre we collected around 800 signatures for the petition – two people signed every minute. We were able to deliver the petitions to Councillor Bibby in person outside the Town Hall last Friday afternoon (18th March).

Councillor Bibby may have recognised the impact his clumsy management of this strategy has had on his own employees. He has been forced to write to them assuring them that he will take full account of the consultation and that ‘in house’ delivery of services will be fairly considered alongside the option to bring in alternative providers.

Bury Action Group is urging the council to publicise the outcome of the consultation. How many reponses supported the outsourcing of services and how many were opposed? How has the consultation influenced Councillor Bibby’s report?

Bury Action Group member, George Heron, commented:

"We think the Tory Group has been taken aback by the strength of the response to their token consultation. Perhaps that will be reflected in the leader’s final report and in the way the ‘strategy’ is implemented – but we can’t rely on that.

In this pre-election period, councillors will listen to their electors more than at any other time – we need to keep demanding they oppose ‘outsourcing’ and cuts".

Bury Action Group can be contacted via buryactiongroup@gmail.com or by phoning George on 0161 798 8762