Letter from Peter Aldous re: Yartoft
2nd January 2008
"Waveney would effectively be disenfranchised."
Sir
In Bob Blizzard’s Letter from Westminster in the Lowestoft Journal last week, he endorses a Yartoft unitary authority, setting out the reasons why he believes this would be better for Waveney.
It would be preferable if this review was not taking place and instead efforts and resources could be fully concentrated on improving frontline services, which would actually benefit the community. This is an unnecessary distraction and it should be borne in mind that last year up to £1.5 million was spent by the 8 Suffolk local authorities in making representations on the abortive Ipswich unitary authority bid. The hard-pressed Council Tax payer will ultimately have to bear both this cost and the expense of the forthcoming review.
With regard to Yartoft, evidence from around the country shows that small unitary authorities, which such an organisation would be, do not provide as good services, which are at the same time affordable, as are given by councils, such as Suffolk County Council, which is responsible for the majority of local government services in the Waveney area, which they largely deliver from local offices. Yartoft, with a population of approximately 160,000 would not be able to achieve the economies of scale that Suffolk County Council is able to do, serving a population in excess of 530,000. .
The creation of Yartoft would also mean that people in Waveney would no longer have an opportunity to influence issues that are important for the area. A case in point is the condition of the A12 between Ipswich and Lowestoft, where there is a need for improvement works so as to upgrade transport links. Such works include the Farnham/Glemham bypass and enhanced flood defence measures at Blythburgh. At present county councillors from the Waveney area can fight Waveney’s corner to ensure that the area’s needs are taken in to account when important decisions are made. With Yartoft there would be no councillors from the Waveney area sitting on the council responsible for the A12 between Ipswich and Kessingland. Waveney would effectively be disenfranchised.
Peter Aldous, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Waveney
