"Joint working" - surely the only way forward

Posted By: Dale Mulgrew
Date Posted: 06/08/2011

Let me start by saying I welcome the move from the Council Leader to re-commit to a plan to share services with other local authorities (as reported in last week's press).

For Rochdale council to make savings over the coming years, it needs to take radical and innovative steps.

With this in mind, I continue to be baffled why joint chief executive talks broke down between both Councils? Such a bold move is being taken elsewhere. For instance, between three Councils in London, so why not here between Oldham and Rochdale?

Especially since the Oldham Labour Council Leader was so outwardly regretful that this failed to happen. He recognised money could be saved by cutting down on the highest paid senior executives from both authorities.

In stark contrast, the Rochdale Labour Council Leader was not only self assured, but offered the excuse such a move would cost more in the long run.

Let me see. You take two highly paid executive structures, merge them into one, and cut in half - how could this cost more money? Perhaps the Labour Council leader’s abacus is in need of a repair?

But crucially we have a looming crisis as Rochdale’s chief executive has already taken voluntary redundancy. This means he cannot be replaced and leaves a leadership vacuum. Until we find out what arrangements can be cobbled together to ensure some kind of leadership is in place for the future of the Council.

After a couple of years of building relations between Rochdale and Oldham, everything was set up for the current Council Leader. This is an open goal which has not only been missed, the ball has landed in row x of tier two!

As indicated by Oldham’s Council leader, the potential savings from merging executive ranks have now been squandered; money that would have been used to protect front line services.

Instead, the top of the tree is protected to shake off those at the bottom. Did you ever think this would happen under a Labour Council leader?