Why is the Council spending our money on propaganda?

11.10.00am GMT Tue 3rd Nov 2009

Nottingham Council's banners are unneccessary expense

Councillor Tony Sutton has made a formal complaint to the District Auditor about Council expenditure on banners promoting the Labour Council.

It is not the first time!

In 2005 the District Auditor found that some Council publicity was unlawful and told the Council they needed to train officers and make sure all publicity was legal. The Council agreed.

In 2007 the District Auditor said that expenditure on some poster and banner material was of questionable lawfulness. The Council can spend money to inform residents, but not on propaganda.

The banners are still there and Tony thinks they are not designed to inform residents about complex issues but are intended to persuade them that performance is better than it really is. That is a waste of tax-payer money! He has asked the District Auditor to consider whether the current banners are lawful.

The constant strap line "Improving Well **" comes from the recent Government Assessment and looks good. But a ** rating means the Council is worse than 4 out of 5 other Councils!

The slogans are one sided and over simple.

For example, the £243m for NCH to spend on council housing was delayed by more than two years because NCH failed to get a good enough inspection rating in 2006 and a damning report has just shown improper allocations when the Council ran the Housing Department and when NCH was first set up.

Tony Sutton believes that every banner is a simplistic political slogan and that it is once again an unlawful use of tax-payer's money.

The Council should spend its time, and our money, on improving Nottingham, not on making the Labour Council look good!

The Council is cocking a snoot at the Auditor and it is time action was taken!