MuckleJoannie Posted November 6, 2011 Report Share Posted November 6, 2011 I believe that the SIC already has a contract for fuel at a fixed price. The SIC itself would be statutorily barred from competing with other fuel suppliers though I guess there would be nothing to stop the Charitable Trust from setting up a fuel business. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghostrider Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 The SIC seems to have over 300 vehicles (painted the same colour as this emoticon ) and is to the continuing annoyance of many, many people....Solution: paint half of them another colour) - Simples Its working.....its working.... They've been running vans of different colours now for months, maybe years. I guess the blue ones and white ones are probably officially described as "camoflagued". Those pesky yellow ones were just too darn easily recognised by the "public". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snow Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I,m with Ghostrider on this one....There is little point in going to these meetings. The SIC will not take a blind bit of notice of what anyone says to them..Just another waste of time and effort.It,a about time the dreaded Yellow and other coloured council vans were kept in a depot overnight and the workers travelled to thir place of work in their own transport like other workers have to do and pay for their over inflated fuel bills. Surely that would cut down costs?It might be a good idea to put in place an appointment system for repairs instead of turning to carry out a repair in the hope the tennent is home! Wasted fuel yet again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner72 Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 There is already a system of that sort. We are certainly told when to something is going to be done and so giving us the opportunity to tell them there will be nobody around or to organise leaving keys with neighbours or whatever. Also remember its not long since the change was made so workers took their vans home instead of going to the depot every morning and night, thus maximising time at the place of work and saving a fortune in fuel running back and forth to the depot. The biggest problem with these meetings, as mentioned and evidenced here, is that the focus seems to be in relatively minor cosmetic things (like streetlights) rather than the real issue, which is that no amount of economising can save 26 million quid. Massive cuts HAVE to be made to all services, including leisure facilities and care homes etc. There is no other way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I'd like to see the Council put together something that works like this site - http://my2050.decc.gov.uk/Sliders to change budgets in each area of service as you prefer, with the effects of those changes shown and the overall savings updated. As Spinner says, I think that would make it clearer just how far cuts on the required scale would actually go and what effects they could have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavi Ugl Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 Unfortunately, it just seems that they are still trying to cut from the bottom i.e the manual workers and poorest paid and are trying their best to not cut from the behemoth depts of social care and housing etc. They're still cutting from the edges when there's basically nothing left and seem unable to grasp the fact that even if they cut the bottom til there's not even a manual worker left it won't be enough. I almost choked when listening to an item on Radio Shetland today at 12.55 which said that at an SIC meeting this morning the "record was put straight" that people don't walk off the boat and into a house. You just couldn't make it up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohanofNess Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I almost choked when listening to an item on Radio Shetland today at 12.55 which said that at an SIC meeting this morning the "record was put straight" that people don't walk off the boat and into a house. You just couldn't make it up Do they go to an apartment first? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Para Handy Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 Wind Turbines - 4 Blades please... Simples Wind Turbines - no Blades please even ... Simpler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustMe Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 I,m with Ghostrider on this one....There is little point in going to these meetings. The SIC will not take a blind bit of notice of what anyone says to them..Just another waste of time and effort.Who will not take a blind bit of notice?. If you mean the officials then perhaps but if you mean the councillors then perhaps the word "election" might wake up and take notice. My own thought is that with the farce over the new AHS that never was, the new Chief Executive who left with a golden goodbye, the Bressay Bridge fiasco and similar ways to spend our money it might be time for the Scottish Government to have a close look to see if this council is fit for purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner72 Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 ^^ It is already clear that the pending election is actually having the opposite effect. The councilors already decided to halt the cuts proposed this year and show no signs of interest in proposing anything significant as yet. It was very telling to see the quote from Cllr Angus in the times this week : "Are we going to leave this to officers to tell us what to do?" Well, yes! Why not for once try operating like a proper council! The fundamental problem with the council is the councilors ability to overrule officials. I am confident pretty much all of the councils departments would be more than capable of operating within the budgets that are set. However until until councilors stop interfering and demanding one thing after another be done, it is an impossible task. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shetlandpeat Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 The officers are the ones with the experience of actually running the show with the itinerary set by the councillors. It could be seen as bad practice to go against officers advice. Could it be that there may be some hostility between the two.On top of that, the Leader of the Council can also over rule things if they decide to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Para Handy Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 ^^ It is already clear that the pending election is actually having the opposite effect. The councilors already decided to halt the cuts proposed this year and show no signs of interest in proposing anything significant as yet. It was very telling to see the quote from Cllr Angus in the times this week : "Are we going to leave this to officers to tell us what to do?" Well, yes! Why not for once try operating like a proper council! The fundamental problem with the council is the councilors ability to overrule officials. I am confident pretty much all of the councils departments would be more than capable of operating within the budgets that are set. However until until councilors stop interfering and demanding one thing after another be done, it is an impossible task. Why not just get rid of the councillors? And put the consultants into the Town Hall.And make them do something for all the money they received. They may be no better than the councilors! but at least they would be doing something for the money. And just one set of twits being paid and claiming expenses. As for Cllr Angus he is the one who started closing Schools in the first place And now he is winging on about the pointless new AHS which is a waist of money. "The fundamental problem with the council is the councilors ability to overrule officials. " How many of said councilors have any ability to do anything regurading running a department "The councilors already decided to halt the cuts proposed this year" Mr Simpson said “the key was finding a package of cuts acceptable to a majority of councillors.â€What a telling quote that is. Oh! But I’m sorry I was under the impression that they represented the public not what they them selves think were acceptable.Around there own pet schemes. The cuts may have been a lot smaller if they had not wasted millions on pointless rubbish! Bressay Bridge and the LHA court costs.Chief Executive who left with a golden goodbye.And now! they are responsible for interviewing candidates for the charitable trustInvesting in the Faroese TitanicThe list is never ending. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carlos Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 As Spinner said, the cuts proposed for now look to be "restrained" with an eye towards election time.... the unfortunate thing is that regardless of who is elected and on what platform, they are going to face the same set of accounts post elections..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shetlander Posted November 9, 2011 Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 The fundamental problem with the council is the councilors ability to overrule officials. I am confident pretty much all of the councils departments would be more than capable of operating within the budgets that are set. However until until councilors stop interfering and demanding one thing after another be done, it is an impossible task. I agree with what you are saying, but surely that has come about because councillors (both past and present) have consistently bowed to any public pressure either to provide more or not to cut back on the services that the council provides. Would you for example have advocated a much more extensive programme of school closures as recommended by education officials as opposed to just Scalloway and Uyeasound closing? The fundamental problem as I see it is that services, and the workforce that delivers them, have grown relatively unchecked over many years to the extent that public expectations far exceed what is now affordable. The dilemma that councillors find themselves in is that they either get slated by the public and/or public spending watchdogs for failing to make savings (which I agree are only going to be realised on any great scale by cutting back on things like ferries, schools or social care) or they get slated by the same public for cutting services to achieve them. As long as the public that councillors represent have different views about what the council should be spending its money on, they will never succeed in keeping everybody happy all of the time. Maybe its time most of us conceded that the main reason we don't want to stand for the council is because its just easier to leave a difficult job to someone else to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner72 Posted November 9, 2011 Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 I would think the bigger hindrance is that most people can't afford to do it, either due to time or financial reasons. Regarding the schools question, then yes it would definitely have been more sensible to approve a more extensive and therefore meaningful, logical, set of closures. Rather than get slated, it would have gone some way to earn the respct that this council is sorely lacking just now. The options being considered need to be cut down IMO. Whatever the subject, only feasible options should be considered. The one where "we can carry on much as before and borrow a little again" needs to be scrapped. In short, if they stop pussyfooting around the issue and make logical transparent decisions, people may not like them, but they will understand and respect them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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