The Dame's Head of Research will be providing her with details of just how Tot managed to burn a million quid(a little vulgar, Dame? Ed) on her clowns and mechanical elephants.
Not content with that total waste of our money the Rotten Borough has casually handed over £45,000 to support Middle Eastern culture in the UK.
This is not the Council's role:there is a superfluity of London based organisations doing just that.
Getting involved in this sort of activity might amuse under-employed councillors, but it is a misuse of money when cuts are savaging basic and essential services. We need to take a sharp look at how much Cultural Services are costing.
The Middle East is flush with oil money: we are not. These sorts of events should be underwritten by the Gulf States and Saudi Arabia.
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Pursuing Nick's logic we should be funding an understanding of French culture....after all, the French population in RBK&C is greater than that of Lille and probably substantially greater than the Arab speakers.
Or how about the Nordic and Slavic populations? How soon will they be demanding handouts for their cultural celebrations?
GET A GRIP NICK! When you are telling residents there is no more money, yet spend it on niche activities people wonder what the hell is going on.
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ReplyDeleteCarrying taxpayers to support cuts is made immeasurably more difficult when the Council allocates scarce resources to what could be justifiable in time of feast, but become impossible in time of financial famine.
ReplyDeleteThe writer makes a valid point about who should be underwriting such events.
Looking at the list of sponsors there is scant evidence of the Cultural Departments of Middle Eastern embassies dipping into their pockets. Why not? They have more of a vested interest besides being mainly resident in the Borough.
Well done Dame. Exposing this kind of abuse is the first stage to get it stopped. Council tax payers are hopping mad. Lets get the National Press to take it further
ReplyDeleteThis is beyond belief. British council tax used to support Arab culture?? Whatever next. The K&C Council is massively adrift. £30 million Exhibition Road that costs £1 million every year to clean (the pink Chinese granite) and Gay and Lesbian Arab festivals at Leighton House. It has to stop. It really has to stop
ReplyDeleteWhere does this information come from? Hornet propaganda again
ReplyDeleteFrom the Council, you damned fool! Where do you think it came from? We know you are stupid Matthew, but do you need proclaim it to the world!
Delete17:01
ReplyDeleteThe Dame asked me to provide you with this...I suppose you would call it RBK&C Propaganda!
Thank you for your recent enquiry about the council's financial contribution to the Nour Festival 2012. The net expenditure was £45,024. This includes expenditure on commissions, grants, publicity and technical fees and is offset against the income earned through ticket sales.
Staffing costs of £800 are included within this figure and relate to staff at Leighton House Museum where some of the events have been held. The overheads of the RBKC Arts team cover all other RBKC staffing costs.
An FOI is required to find out what the "RBKC Arts Team" costs. Absurd. Absurd. Absurd. What on earth is a Council doing employing an "Arts Team"?
DeleteAnother example of what happens when management and scrutiny lose their grip and a local council bureaucracy runs out of control. It is a spending ratchet that moves in one direction only.
ReplyDeleteLeighton House costs taxpayers hundreds of thousands of £s every year to run as a Museum to a painter who happened to live in the Borough. This is not a job for Council Tax. The National Trust should take it over - or art freaks could form a Leighton Society to fund it. And then the ratchet starts. Leighton House is available so "lets spend another £45k of council tax to put on a Middle East gay and lesbian festival"
And all these fripperies are such fun, lets spend another £x and establish an Arts and Crafs department in Hornton Stret on the tax payer.
And don't forget Lindley Sambourne House - another council tax funded "Museum" to a guy who used to live in Kensington. That needs to go to the National Trust as well.
And a council tax funded opera too! That ratchet has gone from £100k per year to £1 million per year in ten years. And still climbing. This provides a speaking opportunity for Deputy Leader Cllr Paget-Brown who likes to refer to "The Great Glory of London that is Holland Park Opera". I kid you not!!!!
Pooter of course likes to project himself as an "opera buff" and feels comfortable in his private garden opera funded by "his" taxpayers. Pass the sick bag, Dame
What we need is a "lean and mean" Council that delivers basic services efficiently. No more social climbing indulgences and self serving vanity projects please.
just saw your blog. I didn't understand why you guys have polled in such a heavy amount as Arab is already rich
ReplyDeleteDhow cruise Dubai