North Lanarkshire and East Ayrshire Councils (Hansard, 15 June 1998)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Scottish Office (Lord Sewel)
My Lords, the Government will not tolerate failure and inefficiency in council services, including direct labour organisations. My right honourable friend has already taken action in East Ayrshire and North Lanarkshire. The Government expect the councils concerned to ensure that local taxpayers and service users do not suffer unnecessarily in consequence.

§ Lord Rowallan
My Lords, I thank the Minister for that reply. I must declare an interest as a council tax payer in East Ayrshire. The North Lanarkshire shortfall of £4.8 million on its direct labour organisation and East Ayrshire's shortfall of £3 million for the second year running must mean that services for the council tax payers of those councils must be hard hit. Can the Minister assure me that the guilty councillors and/or officials responsible for the shortfall will pay for it rather than the council tax payers?

§ Lord Sewel
My Lords, at the moment it is clear that we are dealing with a case of incompetence rather than a case of corruption. An uncontrolled and unplanned deficit may well fall, at least in part, on the council tax payers. In the present circumstances, any local authority has a duty to cut non-essential expenditure immediately and to the bone. Perhaps those two authorities could take account of that and look at travel and entertainment expenditure. I should make it clear that there is no question of additional government grant.

§ Baroness Sharples
My Lords, the Minister speaks of action. What action does he propose to take?

§ Lord Sewel
My Lords, my right honourable friend the Secretary of State served formal notice on the two councils last week. They are required to provide certain information and have three weeks to do so. The Secretary of State can then direct them and use his power to require re-tendering or even the winding-up of the DLO.

§ Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld
My Lords, does my noble friend agree that the action taken by our right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Scotland stands in sharp contrast with the lack of action from the Conservative Government in relation to Westminster council? Comments on matters in North Lanarkshire and East Ayrshire would have more credibility if the Conservative Party had got round to dealing with the sleaze in Westminster council.

§ Lord Sewel
My Lords, I thank my noble friend for those accurate comments. In all seriousness, what happened in North Lanarkshire and East Ayrshire was unacceptable. In those circumstances, the real question is what we do as a government. We acted, and acted decisively.

§ Lord Mackay of Ardbrecknish
My Lords, I begin by congratulating the Minister on succeeding in gaining a place on his party's list as a candidate for the Scottish parliament. Is he aware that it must be a singular achievement for a Member of this place to pass what some people describe as the "Politburo" set up to vet candidates? Does the Minister have some regrets about the number of Labour local councillors who are sharing his position in the list, given the disrepute into which so many Labour councillors have brought Scottish local government? While the noble Lord, Lord Hogg, can name one council, what does the Minister have to say about Monklands—changed into North Lanarkshire to make it sound better—Paisley or Renfrew, where one MP committed suicide, another had to obtain police protection and a third has been suspended by his party for ages? The police had to go into that council 20 times and a senior policeman said, "If it had been a public house, we would have closed it down." We have the problems too of East Ayrshire and East Dunbartonshire. Words from the Government are fine. But action is necessary to protect local council tax payers and services to the public.

§ Lord Sewel
My Lords, my right honourable friend acted clearly, firmly and decisively. As a former leader of my own council, a former president of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and as a former member of the Accounts Commission in Scotland, I take seriously any improper action in local government, no matter which party or individuals are involved. I am also aware, as indeed is that other product of local government, the noble Lord, Lord Mackay of Ardbrecknish, of the great work so many councillors do for their communities. That should be recognised.