Wednesday 5 January 2011

Newham's Labour Mayor Borrows Tory Slogan To Sell Local Cuts In Services

Politicians of every party seem to operate using the same public-relations playbook. So it is that Newham's Mayor Sir Robin Wales, who last summer gave himself an inflation-busting pay increase of four per cent rise, taking his salary to £81,029 a year, has borrowed a slogan from the Tories to spin the cuts that will soon affect low-paid council workers and some of the poorest residents in the country.

Echoing David Cameron's ludicrous claim that "we are all in this together", the Great Helmsman is holding a series of one-hour events over three days under the banner of 'Newham Together', in an attempt to sell his case for massive cuts in the borough. Sir Robin wants to make people "understand how council funding has been affected by the national cuts" and to "tell him what services you value". There is no indication that these 'opinion-sharing' events (more like a stern lecture from the Mayor) will make the slightest impact on the decisions that have an impact on local services from April.

If anyone has an hour to kill and wants to give the Great Helmsman a piece of their mind, details of the sessions can be found at www.newham.gov.uk/newhamtogether

2 Comments:

Sir Robin of Newham said...

Hi Kevin,

Thanks for giving this series of events some coverage and I hope you attend one of them.

I think that it is important to give every Newham resident the opportunity to hear my oratory skills and what better forum than a briefing by me explaining why I’m tightening your belts.

The phrase “Newham Together: facing the cuts as one” isn’t a spin on the ConDem mantra, it is in fact a summation of my credo regarding how best to view the impending cuts.

The cuts will be more palatable to Newham residents when they realise that the most important resident – me, as endorsed by 64,748 other residents! – will remain financially secure. So all of Newham Together will be facing the cuts with the “one” (me) and be comforted by the fact that I, and my trusty Mayoral Advisers, will be all right.

By the way, there is a typo at the bottom of the flyer, it should read: “Please arrive early to ensure disappointment”.

Regards,

Robin

Anonymous said...

Dear Robin,

We understand.

The only thing I don't understand is why nobody within Newham Labour Party is willing to do anything about your corrupt and seedy little regime.

Random Blowe | Original articles licensed under a Creative Commons License.

BACK TO TOP