Policies

Your Future, Your Liverpool is the Labour groups 2009/2010 policy commission. For the last few months, we have been meeting and discussing policy, working towards the package of pledges we will put to the people of Liverpool at the 2010 local elections.

We don’t just want this process to be open to Labour Party members. We want members of communities across Liverpool to be able to have your say, and to give us your ideas on what you want your council to do. Liverpool is facing a challenging future – we’re all in this together, so lets start talking about how we’re going to move Liverpool forward.

We have divided up policy into five zones:

• Childrens Services, Skills and Employment
• Environment, Housing and Safer Communities
• Regeneration, Transport and Culture
• Health, Well Being and Social Care
• People, Performance and Procurement

Do you think you might be able to contribute ideas towards policy in any of these areas? Our policy gurus are waiting to hear your ideas. If you would like more information about any of these commissions, please email us on policy@liverpoollabour.org and we will have a look at your ideas.

This is your chance to put your ideas into action, and to work with us to drive Liverpool forwards.

What are Liverpool Labour’s top priorities for the city?

Following 11 years of Lib Dem rule, Liverpool City Council is now projected to have a £120million black hole in its finances over the next 5 years. There are 55,000 people out of work, 23,000 people waiting for a new house, and 600 people are leaving the city every year to seek a new life elsewhere.

At the same time, the Lib Dem council has shelled out £6million on consultants in three years. It has spent millions every year on expensive PR and advertising. The number of fat cat council officers earning more than £100,000 has ballooned, more than doubling from 11 to 26.

In fact the top four Officers from Liverpool City Council now cost more to employ than the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary and Chancellor of the Exchequer put together – and that’s before the quarter of a million pounds worth of annual bonuses of the senior management team are included!

Liverpool Labour's top priority is to rebalance the City Council in favour of the people it is supposed to serve. We will slash the millions being paid to consultants. We will reduce the money going into PR and marketing, and redirect that money to support front line council services. We will lead a council culture change, where the city council is there to provide the long needed leadership for development in the city, encouraging construction and jobs where appropriate.

In short we have listened to you and we know that your priorities are our priorities. With new leadership we can make Liverpool work better.

What will Liverpool Labour do with my council tax?

Liverpool Labour is committed to keeping your council tax as low as we possibly can.

We don't know how bad the city's finances will be when we take power. We wouldn't want to make promises now when we don't know what the economic reality will be in 18 months time. Our approach will be aimed at keeping taxes low, and making sure we squeeze as much value as we can out of the council tax that you pay.

We will cut the number of consultancies, estimated to have cost around £6 million. We will slash money spent on publicity, and we will also cut bonuses to Senior Officers who are already well paid. Our goal is to protect front line services and provide value for money to you, the ratepayers.

What will Liverpool Labour do to tackle unemployment?

Liverpool Labour wants to see the City Council do more to drive youth training and employment. The council has vast resources – we will use these to get people into work. We will insist that new projects and developments that the City Council enters into with businesses will include jobs and training opportunities for local people. We will champion local labour initiatives for local people and assist local businesses.

In our first year in power, Liverpool Labour will aim to create 100 apprenticeships. These will be proper apprenticeships, not just schemes.

How would Liverpool Labour solve the city’s housing crisis?

We are under no illusions as to the scale of this task: Under the Liberal Democrats, 23,000 residents have been left on the housing waiting list, unable to find a home they want either for rent or for sale.

Liverpool Labour's approach will be two pronged: In our first year in power, we will bring new, affordable homes onto the market, whether that be through renovating derelict houses or stimulating new build. We will also look for imaginative ways to solve the problems of residents on the waiting list. Many people could be offered a house swap. Many pensioners need bungalows. How many families are in over crowded houses?

We will work to solve these problems, and drive down the long waiting list. We will work with Housing Associations to build new homes for rent using land owned by the Council to do so.

Can Liverpool Labour clean up our area?

Liverpool Labour will lead the battle against the mess that blights so many communities. In our first 12 months in power, we will clean up 1000 more grot spots, including clearing our pavements of dog dirt, litter, fly tipping and mess. We will do this by introducing a green clean team in every neighbourhood.

We are going to clean up Liverpool, street by street.

We have also introduced, on to our own Labour website, a page called “Fix My Road” where members of the public can contact the Liverpool Labour Party about any problem in their neighbourhood which will be dealt with by us immediately.