End for Council Magazine in further £45,000 Saving from Council PR

One of my early decisions as mayor was to cut the cost of the Council magazine 'Borough News,' halving the number of editions to 6 a year and making delivery cheaper and wider-reaching across the whole borough. This produced a major saving for the taxpayer, while improving the design, content and reach of the magazine in order to make it more useful for local residents. I hear a range of views about Borough News from residents, some from people who like to receive it, others who feel it is a waste of money. Personally, while I can see its purpose and have worked to make it more useful and cost effective, in the current climate resources must be directed to the front line to protect services while keeping tax down. We are therefore now going further and stopping the magazine altogether in order to communicate with residents in more cost effective ways.

Taxpayers rightly expect nothing less than for the Council to do all it can to ensure every penny is working for local residents. This move will save local taxpayers £45,000, and is being made as part of an approach that has enabled us to cut back office and PR costs dramatically, finding new ways of working and protecting services even while other areas are seeing local services stripped down.

The end of Borough News does not mean the Council will be reducing its communication with residents. As Mayor and leader of the Council I continue my regular, frequent surgeries around the Borough and at Borough Hall, and can also be contacted by phone, email and here at www.mayordave.org.uk, not to mention on twitter (www.twitter.com/mayordave) and facebook (www.facebook.com/mayordave). Meanwhile the Council is open and accessible to visitors to the Town Hall and Borough Hall, by phone, email and also via its website.