“This Authority has established several companies in the last eighteen months that has resulted in reduced oversight for services that ordinarily are carried out by the Council; Councillors and the public being unaware of what is happening in these companies; and public finances in connection with public sector ventures being questioned. Will the Leader of Council, therefore, pledge to halt the continuing outsourcing of services to teckal companies and promise not to create any new companies, including any relating to the City Deal, for the remainder of this term?”
Minutes:
“This Authority has established several companies in the last eighteen months that has resulted in reduced oversight for services that ordinarily are carried out by the Council; Councillors and the public being unaware of what is happening in these companies; and public finances in connection with public sector ventures being questioned. Will the Leader of Council, therefore, pledge to halt the continuing outsourcing of services to teckal companies and promise not to create any new companies, including any relating to the City Deal, for the remainder of this term?”
Response by Councillor E. Dole, Leader of the Council:-
“No.”
Councillor James asked the following supplementary question:-
“Yes., it is clear from this exchange that this administration is in over its head and being led on a very dark path. Do you really believe that the public are going to trust you with the public purse going forward?”
Response by Councillor Emlyn Dole, Leader of the Council:-
“That one is yes. Perhaps I can take a moment to explain to Councillor James what a Teckal Company is? A Teckal Company is a common name for a company which benefits from contracts for works, services or supply from its controlling contracting Authority without having to go through a competitive tendering process. Carmarthenshire County Council like all other Authorities must control all of the shares in the Company and must also exercise the day to day control over its affairs. There is no outsourcing here, I know he loves the word but it is irrelevant. In other words it is exactly the same as the relationship between the Council and one of its internal directories. This can be achieved through that governance structure. The Company also has to be inwardly focused not outwardly. The directive requirement is that at least 80% of the activity of a Teckal Company, that is over 80% of its turnover must be for the benefit of its public sector owner. Any contracts with other public sector bodies or private sector entities will not benefit from the Teckal exemption and the company would have to tender in the ordinary way for such contracts in accordance with any applicable procurement legislation.
It is interest to note in passing that the approach of setting up companies, including for city deal purposes, received a seal of approval from Carwyn Jones, the First Minister and his likely successor Mark Drakeford, just a few months ago. Now there is some political reality for you. Now here is the thing Rob, the practical and financial reality is that Local Authorities across Wales are having to come up with innovative ideas that are delivering services that people represent rely on day in day out. We have to do that in such a way that we make better use of our limited financial resources and look for new opportunities to create new income. I hardly think that we need reminding, that we are in this position largely because of the priorities set by a tired and inept Welsh Labour Government in Cardiff. I was in Cardiff yesterday listening to a most excellent address by the outgoing Chief Executive of the WLGA who made that exact point very eloquently.
I know it is popular to blame the Welsh Minister Government for our financial woes but when the Chancellor Phillip Hammond indicated that there was extra money coming our way, after the recent budget Mark Drakeford made it abundantly clear that Local Government was not his priority. And despite all of his warm words at WLGA events and conferences that remains the same. He was interviewed only last week by the Western Mail and all he could say was, “if all Local Authorities in Wales were subjected to the same level of cuts facing Councils in England, we would be facing cuts of £65m in Wales”. You are better off than England, that was his reply and that is not good enough. Not a hint of anything extra for Local Government in Wales. The money’s there, but he has other priorities. In the meantime we face the real prospect of further cutbacks in the next financial year.
The NHS were licking their lips at the prospect of a very generous 3.5% increase next year. What does he do? Gives them 7% increase in an effort to play ping pong and trump the West Minister Government in London, meanwhile leaving local Authorities with a -5% deficit in real terms.
You know what Councillor James, we all heard the Tories bleating just recently with some hollow words about the supposed end of austerity. We mustn’t allow ourselves to take much comfort in that. Mark Drakeford and the Welsh Government are running their own Welsh austerity programme and we are at the sharp end. This week we start the consultation process on next year’s budget. Let me remind you of something that you said at out last Council meeting and I quote you said that you would be going to take a forensic look at next year’s budget. I’ll tell you what you will be far better off doing, taking your forensic look at the woeful provisional budget settlement for Local Governments set in the Labour Government in the Assembly and spending your time rather persuading your Labour colleagues in Cardiff to look again at providing reasonable budget settlement for Local Government. The money’s there, and while you are at it remind them about their promise that they told us that we are first in the queue and that we will be prioritised.
I don’t know who said it, but there were probably right, knowledge is giving the right answer to a question. If that is true then surely intelligence has to be about the ability to ask the right question in the first place.”