South Today-we are being taken for a ride..

[xenophon]

"Top heavy" was an unwise turn of phrase, "quite a lot" may have been more accurate, certainly more than they pull nationwide, but I could be wrong here as well.

Green, blue, perhaps my jaundiced eye and slight colour blindness led me to "sex up" the preponderance of Greenshirts on the hallowed board (Rogues Gallery). But, without having studied the breakdown of the Green Party presence on local councils elsewhere on this Sceptred Isle, I did notice a large showing for the aforementioned Party, which no doubt carries a lot of clout within the local governance of Brighton and Hove City Council.

I am not a Tory, I am a card carrying member of the Libertarian Party of the UK, a contradiction in terms perhaps, but the LPUK, being minarchists, are closer to my ideal of a liberal (in the classic sense, not the North American bastardisation of the word) society, where you pays your money and you gets your property in a completely free market anarchistic system.

But I digress, the Tories, Labour, Lib Dems etc, and yes even the Green Stasi have not much between them, all are big statist and anti-individualist, I invite each and every one of them to pick the corn from my shite.

 

[clapham_gull]

I do not have any figures but is a widely held conception of how money is distributed and a view expressed in the media by more knowledgable people than you and I.

There is of course Westminster Council that likes to pander to Conservative voters by telling everyone it has the second lowest council tax in the country.

That's probably why it also has the highest parking revenue in London.....

 

[Barrel of Fun]

Should the South East subsidise the rest of the country? - Telegraph

Council tax is bled from South to boost North | Mail Online

The real North-South divide: Council tax hikes squeeze the South - as Government is accused of subsidising its northern heartlands | Mail Online

Taxpayers in South 'subsidising the North' - Telegraph

 

[clapham_gull]

Should the South East subsidise the rest of the country? - Telegraph

Council tax is bled from South to boost North | Mail Online

The real North-South divide: Council tax hikes squeeze the South - as Government is accused of subsidising its northern heartlands | Mail Online

Taxpayers in South 'subsidising the North' - Telegraph

It's been the case for years, even under the Tories. Just a story that gets rolled out by those papers when they havent got anything else to write about.

 

[The Large One]

Well, that Mail story blows BG's argument straight out of the window.

Even if that story refers to every council in the South East of England (which it doesn't say it does), it counts for little as it's a four-and-a-bit year old story when Brighton & Hove City Council was Labour-run.

 

[clapham_gull]

Well, that Mail story blows BG's argument straight out of the window.

Even if that story refers to every council in the South East of England (which it doesn't say it does), it counts for little as it's a four-and-a-bit year old story when Brighton & Hove City Council was Labour-run.

And as we have seen Tory controlled councils love the headline low council tax figure but make up the short fall with parking fines.

 

[Barrel of Fun]

It's been the case for years, even under the Tories. Just a story that gets rolled out by those papers when they havent got anything else to write about.

I agree.

It is a tricky situation. Are the poor of the South-East better off than the poor of the North?

 

[clapham_gull]

I agree.

It is a tricky situation. Are the poor of the South-East better off than the poor of the North?

No idea, but my eyes were opened a little last weekened.

I lived all over London (including the very rough bits), in the North West and travelled to most parts of England usually for football.

I was quite shocked by parts of the area around Aston. Not that I havent seen places like that before or seen places much worse, Toxteth in the 80s comes to mind.

I just seen somewhere like for a while. It had just died. Very sad.

There are bit of Liverpool like that as well.

 

[aberllefenni]

Aren't the parking tickets issued by a private company (NCP I think) in Brighton and Hove?

 

[cunning fergus]

Pride brings millions in to the city economy. Repairing potholes doesn't have a nice easily quantifiable sum for its benefits - which there of course are. Thats why Pride is getting whatever funding it gets - there'd be even less for potholes if it ceased to happen.

Any idea why can't Pride get the businesses that benefit with all these millions to stump up £30,000 then?

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

Any idea why can't Pride get the businesses that benefit with all these millions to stump up £30,000 then?

I was thinking the same thing.

 

[SICKASAGULL]

The Council only pocket these fines because drivers are too lazy to park in the legal spaces provided,these drivers will eventually fall in line with the great majority.

 

[Cian]

Any idea why can't Pride get the businesses that benefit with all these millions to stump up £30,000 then?

Have you ever tried to get money out of a hotelier? I have (due to DJing) and even when its something they signed a contract for its like blood from a stone. Charity/not for profit's looking donations can dream on. Publicans are often the same.

Is it only 30k the council pay out? To get 120,000 people in to the city thats a miniscule outlay.

 

[cunning fergus]

Actually its 50K, but that's not the point. If Pride is a commercial winner for the pubs/hotels etc. then the businesses would stump up. The people that own the businesses are capitalists after all so your argument really does not hold water.

In these troubled times it is certainly not the job of the council to pay council tax payers money out to a loss making charity which serves a minority interest.

Its my view that in the summer Brighton is pretty much booked up to the gunnels, so the Pride weekend does not actually represent a material difference, if we didn't have it the cockaneese would still come. They just wouldn't be dressed as sailors or cowboys. That's it.

 

[Techno]

No idea, but my eyes were opened a little last weekened.

I lived all over London (including the very rough bits), in the North West and travelled to most parts of England usually for football.

I was quite shocked by parts of the area around Aston. Not that I havent seen places like that before or seen places much worse, Toxteth in the 80s comes to mind.

I just seen somewhere like for a while. It had just died. Very sad.

There are bit of Liverpool like that as well.

Im with you on that.
Ive lived here for over a year and a half now but had never been to that area of aston before last weekend; never had the need to really, I live over the other side of town near the university, edgbaston/selly oak way, and hadnt been to watch the villa (40+ quid for premiership tickets!!).
I have seen quite a lot of the city, including some pretty rough areas, but being young and living all my life until now in a nice enough area outside milton keynes, that was quite possibly the worst case of urban decline i've seen. It didnt feel that dangerous or dodgy (might do at night though), just felt really depressing. Shocking and Sad.

 

[The Large One]

Actually its 50K, but that's not the point. If Pride is a commercial winner for the pubs/hotels etc. then the businesses would stump up. The people that own the businesses are capitalists after all so your argument really does not hold water.

In these troubled times it is certainly not the job of the council to pay council tax payers money out to a loss making charity which serves a minority interest.

Its my view that in the summer Brighton is pretty much booked up to the gunnels, so the Pride weekend does not actually represent a material difference, if we didn't have it the cockaneese would still come. They just wouldn't be dressed as sailors or cowboys. That's it.

Pride DOES have local businesses sponsoring it and stumping up for the event.

It is also the biggest single-day event in the Brighton calendar (attracting up to 100,00 visitors), so how you can say it makes no difference beats me.

 

[Deleted User X18H]

Pride DOES have local businesses sponsoring it and stumping up for the event.

It is also the biggest single-day event in the Brighton calendar (attracting up to 100,00 visitors), so how you can say it makes no difference beats me.

What a load of rubbish. It has some small struggling businesses who need any kind a cheap advertising. Pride is to be scaled right down in 2012 anyway. What happens in 2011? Will Pride be allowed to prevent Albion from having their first League fixture at home on the opening day of the season or even a lucrative friendly at a crucial time? The two events are on a collision course and something needs to be done and fast. If Pride was wanted by the people of Brighton and Hove the money needed to stage would have been found. It wasn't!

 

[beorhthelm]

Council are raising more money from city motorists than Southampton, Portsmouth and Bournemouth combined. Also 5 times more than any other similar sized town or city.

no one has asked the obvious question: how? what are the actual revenues raised? is it becuase of higher parking charges? higher parking tickets issued? or more parking available and owned by the council? as a stat "city a makes more money from motorists than b+c+d" means f*** all without some context.


as for the bitching about Pride, if you dont like it f*** off to another city. its as much a part of Brighton as the Pavilion.

 

[Cian]

What a load of rubbish. It has some small struggling businesses who need any kind a cheap advertising.

Barclays Bank may be struggling but they aren't small! Other sponsors include the COOP, First Capital Connect and Metrobus, not really small or struggling are they?