It’s the great election year give away…..
RCT Council appear to have won the lottery or been left a substantial sum in a rich Uncle's will because all of a sudden we have stopped hearing about cuts they are being forced to make and the hard decisions they don't want to take.
Instead it is all good news and improvements and give-aways. So obviously they must have come into some unexpected cash from somewhere. Unless, of course, shock, horror, there is another explanation!
Could it be that we are leading up to the Council election in typical Labour style – telling everyone what they want to know in order to get re-elected? Surely not, they wouldn't do such a thing. Would they?
They do of course have a track record of, how shall we put this, um, er….. lying to the electorate. Take their last Council manifesto for example. They promised to keep weekly black bag collections, and seven day meals on wheels delivery. They didn't. They promised to keep the E3 programme of after school activities and then cut it. They said in black and white that they would keep Pontypridd paddling pool and then the week after the election voted to remove it.
So they certainly have form in this.
Now we are seeing a sudden spending spree, accompanied by the obligatory photos of Cabinet Members posing in wards they have taken no interest in before -especially wards held by opposition members.
Councillor Mike Powell has been battling for some considerable time to get highways improvement and repairs in his ward, now suddenly they are being done, with photos of the Labour leader accompanying a press release telling you what his council are doing. Note the improvements to playgrounds suddenly being promoted – welcome as they are, it is surely a coincidence that after all the cutbacks money has been found now.
Car park charges are the latest announcement. For years the Welsh Lib Dems in RCT have been arguing for reduced or free car parking and the Labour group have ignored our calls. Yet now, with an election looming, they have announced they will consult on reducing charges.
We can only trust that people will not be fooled by these cynical moves again.
AberdareOnline would add
For the past 4 years we were informed by the labour run Rhondda Cynon Taf Council there was no money available and major cut in public services were necessary savings had to be made.
But then as election time approaches the RCT labour money tree start spurting cash after being fed with all the bullshit over the past 4 years it was paying off just before the local elections.
But are the people of Rhondda Cynon Taf that gullibly to believe this sudden bonanza of cash injection by the labour party just before an election?
