26 January 2010
Source: LocalGov.co.uk ()

Tories attack council newspaper value-for-money claim


Chris Smith

The Conservatives have attacked the Audit Commission’s verdict that council newspapers are value for money.

The party’s local government minister, Bob Neill, claimed the commission’s investigation into whether council publications are a valid use of resources did not tackle the core problem of competing with local papers.

"Labour's weakening of the rules on town hall publicity is not only wasting taxpayers' money, but is now starting to erode a free press. Shutting down genuine local newspapers will harm the cause of localism by undermining robust local accountability."

Tory local government spokesman, Bob Neill
Mr Neill said some council publications were ‘clearly anti-competitive’: ‘Councils need to keep their residents informed about the frequency and scope of local services, but there is no case for branching out into weekly newspapers with entertainment listings and sports reviews.

‘Labour's weakening of the rules on town hall publicity is not only wasting taxpayers' money, but is now starting to erode a free press. Shutting down genuine local newspapers will harm the cause of localism by undermining robust local accountability.’

In a letter to minister for Digital Britian, Stephen Timms, Audit Commission chief executive Steve Bundred said no rules had been broken and councils were meeting a duty to inform the public.

Mr Bundred added: ‘Communication is important to inform the public of the services councils provide and the functions they perform.

‘The money being spent by councils is not unreasonable, though they should always consider whether it provides good value. Few council publications are published sufficiently frequently to be viable media for most local advertising.’

Click here to read Steve Bundred's letter to Stephen Timms

More on council newspapers:

Council ‘newspapers’ come under fire, again
Axe council newspapers Spelman tells counties
All the news that fits



Your comments

I agree with the Conservatives.Publishing newspapers is not a core activity and should be scaled back and the staff involved either employed in front line work or be made redundant I do not want my council tax spent on producu8ng publicity on nhigh quality paper which could be better provided by passing on info to local papers at little or no cost

Alan Douglas, EAD Consultants, Added: Wednesday, 27 January 2010 08:40 AM



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