The Lib Dems at Surrey County Council have persuaded the Tory administration to set up an in depth review into the way that the County's contracts are set up and monitored. The County Council is contracting out more and more of its services including such things as school transport but it was revealed last week that the council has inadequate information regarding the performance of that and other contracts.
Surrey County Council has inadequate information on the performance of the contract to provide school transport in Surrey; Surrey County Council's Corporate Management Select Committee has been informed. It was admitted that the contract to provide school transport was not set up in a way that allows the County Council to check whether what the contractors are doing is the most efficient and cost effective way of providing the service.
Auditors KPMG have warned in their annual audit inspection that £26 million, already given to the County Council for its waste disposal scheme, might have to be returned to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM). If this happened there would be extremely grave consequences for the Council's financial position. So at next Tuesday's meeting of Surrey County Council, Lib Dem County Councillor Tom Sharp will ask what steps the Tory administration are taking to ensure that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not reclaim £26m already given to the County Council for its waste disposal scheme.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced on the 10th of December a £340 million increase in this year's provisional grant for county councils, of which Surrey's share is £7.3 million, according to the Council's figures. The Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, Cllr Janet Maines says: "This is good news for Surrey residents who have been hit hard by Conservative Council Tax rises. The Liberal Democrats will put pressure on the Conservative Administration on Surrey County Council to use this money to keep Council Tax as low as possible, while making sure local services are protected. The Liberal Democrats have also recommended to the Conservative administration that they should put some funding into preventative measures that would keep the budget under control for future years."
Following a motion tabled by Lib Dem County Councillor David Timms, Surrey County Council has now publicly acknowledged its concern over a number of serious weaknesses in its Children's Services that were identified in a recent report by the Audit Commission and the Social Services Inspectorate. The Council has also committed itself to monitor progress towards overcoming these weaknesses.
At Surrey County Council's meeting on 21st October, Lib Dem Councillor David Timms challenged a statement made by the Conservative administration strongly suggesting that Surrey's Children's Services were a model to be emulated nationally. He asked why the Tories had not awaited publication of the results of a joint review of Surrey's social service department by the Social Services Inspectorate and the Audit Commission, before making this kind of boast.
