Wasteful Councils

[emmie]

i thought ours were bad, what a waste of money. I did watch the interesting programme on last evening about councils ripping off the motorist on parking fines, wonder how some keep their jobs, or get them in the first place.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-24205638

[emmie]

once their repairs service was in house, now it is not. We have two different companies that deal with tv aerials, if they turn up and it's not the right aerial problem you have wasted a day, and no there is no way i believe the council knows about half the problems, because for the most part they are staffed by people who don't give a monkeys. It is why i would get private contractors in as have done in the past, at least i know that what i pay will be x, and if my painters, decorators, plumbers or whatever screw up then i can get them back in quickly to put it right, not so with the council contractors. last year had 4 visits by different council contract plumbers, each one criticised the others for the shoddy workmanship, 4 days of my life i won't get back again. I am loathe to ask them for anything

[emmie]

gromit dig at the bankers is commonplace, he doesn't like them nor anyone involved it would seem in that side of life.

[ummmm]

You're talking about small works. I've never lived in a council house so that wouldn't occur to me. I was thinking the larger road works and such like.

[emmie]

road works are a somewhat different matter, then again our council and their contractors have replaced pavements, months later come back and do it again, and again. One small stretch of pavement near our home has been replaced six times in two years, for no reason that is ever given, nor is it a small problem, the cost involved must be enormous. I wouldn't employ any contractor from the council if i could afford to get the work done privately, because first off you have no actual control over how long it will take, or whether they will get it right, as i have said one matter took 4 visits, each person criticised the others, you can't win, wasteful councils....

[tamborine]

TV aerials fitted at tax payers expense - preposterous !

[emmie]

it might be to you, but some are communal, so there is no say....

[ummmm]

So if you're a council tenant and something goes wrong, they fix it for free?

[emmie]

indoor aerials do not work well, the council had a major aerial programme across the borough two years ago, and that included for council tenant and leaseholder so it's not all about social housing.

[emmie]

not necessarily,

[emmie]

most of the work done here was done by us, i wouldn't let them in before because of their terrible workmanship. If it was mine to do as i please, which it is not, then i would have been able to make some changes, there are lots of regulations on social housing which you cannot do, at least not without permission. and that isn't often granted.

[Gromit]

Factor-fiction

When HBOS went bust, the Government (tax payer) handed over £21billion to keep it afloat. Part of that money was used to pay the banks running costs - keeping the lights on, paying the staff, and adding to staff pension pots. Some of those responsible for bronging the banking sector to near collapse kept their generous pension plans. Very few were persued like Goodwin for a cut.