When I worked in banking the period around New Year was blighted by being obliged to write a ‘year ahead’ piece in which you were supposed to predict what was going to happen to your area of expertise in the coming months.
Well, old habits die hard, and once again I am having a go, despite the fact that last year I was wrong about almost everything! I was hopelessly optimistic about the outcome of the General Election for the Conservatives, expecting a majority of around 30, and, of course, failed to predict the coalition with the Liberal Democrats. I was also wrong about the outcome of the Local Government Review, thinking that the then Labour Government would impose unitary arrangements on Suffolk. Suffolk was so internally divided about the issue that it was decided that we should go away and sort a scheme out for ourselves.
The areas I got right however were concerned with a) lack of funds at the council and b) the environment. 2010 was the year that saw car parking charges finally introduced in Sudbury, and, as I have commented recently, 2010 proved to be a bad year for wildlife despite being the Year of biodiversity.
Looking ahead, at the national level, I expect the Coalition to battle on, becoming more and more unpopular but more or less doing the right things to keep the UK economy on the rails. There are likely to be some economic shocks from the Eurozone however, which could make life more difficult for British banks and therefore for the Government.
We have local elections for Babergh in May 2011, and in the early months of the year we will be busy preparing for these. I expect that the Conservatives will remain the largest group, but also expect to see both the Liberal Democrats and ourselves lose seats to the Labour Party, which, for much of the last four years, has been absent from the council. The Conservative have some bright new candidates in the pipeline, and I anticipate that they will impress the voters with their energy and do well in May.
Canvassing and campaigning in April and early May will be made more difficult by the timing of Easter and also of the Royal Wedding. However, the poll is likely to be at the same time as the national referendum on AV, so the turnout is likely to be higher than usual.
Then there is increased co-operation, and perhaps movement towards, the full merger of Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils. It is probable that there will be some sort of poll to gauge public opinion on the question of a full merger, but, whatever happens to the councillors and the constitution, we will be moving ahead rapidly to combine the officer structure of both councils under a shared Chief Executive.
The front end loading of the cuts in the Government grant settlement for the Council means that cost pressures will continue to be an issue Early and decisive action over the past year will definitely help balance the books however. Local charities will see less pain than in 2010/11 to the extent that the concessionary business rate rebate will probably be held at current levels. I anticipate that on the whole services will be protected in the coming year although fewer people will be delivering them. No further changes are likely to car parking charges, although I cannot be so sure of this looking beyond 2011/12.
Waldingfield Ward is likely to see work starting on the Folly Road site in Great Waldingfield, and a decision is likely on the Prolog application in Church Field Road in Chilton. The construction of Chilton Woods however is unlikely to start in 2011, although the first planning applications may see the light of day. There will be further debate about the new Babergh Development Framework and I urge all readers who are concerned about the future of the area to take an active interest in this.
The Government has promised to give more power to local authorities, particularly in the areas of planning and licencing. Next year we will begin to see how much more powerful we really are!
