The offices of Lichfield District Council. Pic: Lichfield District Council

Taxpayers in Lichfield and Burntwood have been told they will need to think of Lichfield District Council as a business in future.

The offices of Lichfield District Council. Pic: Lichfield District Council
The offices of Lichfield District Council. Pic: Lichfield District Council

Chancellor George Osborne is expected to confirm a further cut to the money given to local authorities this month.

With a recent report saying Lichfield District Council faces “severe” financial risks – despite the Fit for the Future initiative finding £1.8 million of savings – Cllr Joseph Powell, Conservative represrepresentative for Little Aston and Stonnall, says the authority has had to adopt a business model in order to thrive.

Cllr Joseph Powell
Cllr Joseph Powell

He said: “If you’re a business turning over £58million a year as Lichfield District Council does then people would expect that business to be run professionally.

“Our leader Mike Wilcox is basically the council’s managing director – he along with the rest of the cabinet makes sure everything is run properly and professionally.

“Around 20 per cent of our revenue comes from people paying council tax. But we run the authority for the benefit of everyone regardless of how they voted.”

However, Cllr Powell said that the Conservative government would determine the future financial health of Lichfield District Council.

He believes that despite the difficult financial climate, the local authority has delivered value for money for residents.

He said: “We’re in the bottom 10 per cent for council tax rates in England and we’re also in the bottom 10 per cent for councillior expenses.”

NCTJ-trained reporter with experience in a wide variety of journalism settings.

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Grumpy Joe
8 years ago

I agree that the Council should be run on commercial lines for the benefit of taxpayers and other service recipients. However, there is a social aspect to the work of the Council so social services should not be cut but reviewed for effectiveness and appropriateness. There are individuals in Society who cannot manage without support from others and this is where the council may have a role. At the same, the Council needs to consider its own effectiveness and whether it offers value for money for tax payers. I seem to remember that a review of the council was conducted by the Local Government Association and it made a number of recommendations – have they been applied? I have not seen any initiatives from LDC on those ideas, have you? I noticed that the councillors voted for a stonking increase recently – do they deserve it? There has been much debate about the provision of a car for the chairman of the council – how was that resolved? I understand that the Council spends tens of thousands of pounds on sending printed material to Councillors for their meetings – have they heard of the digital age? What social services will such figures buy for the poorest in society? How long has it taken for Friarsgate to reach this stage and still, a spade has not be used in anger on the site? C’mon, Councillors show what you are made of and make Lichfield a great place to live and stop sitting on your hands.