Ballot Papers Finally Arrive for 2014 Council Election

Welcome to my first blog post.

It’s taken a while to get the website going but it’s a good one now.

As ballot papers are out for the Local Government Elections in 2014 and I am a Local Government Councillor, of course I have to mention it don’t I?

Despite what some people may say (and they have as much a vested interest in the debate as I have), our Council has been a VERY good one. Lowest rates, highest services and a well led, stable financial situation has seen our Council emerge from the brink about ten years ago and running really well.

We are bereft of the other issues some other Councils are plagued with such as high rates, poor services, Council infighting and poor leadership.

Of course we’re not perfect, and there will always be a need for improvement, and we will never get to Nirvana as people have competing desires on what they want from Council, but what frightens me is there is much that can go wrong in the wrong hands, and that voting in the wrong people really can make that difference.

When I ask people who move into this area from some other Council areas what they think of our Council area, there is a almost always a compliment on lower rates and better services: and they know having lived elsewhere.

Yes, I am happy to stake a claim in that success, as I work damn hard for the community, and I am proud of the achievements of both myself and the Council as a whole.

However, when after the elections, and if, as I suspect, there is a considerably different Council elected, things start to go wrong, it will be because there will be a number of new people on Council.

Some will be there to replace members who have retired or resigned (four) but other will be because they have displaced good sitting members who have worked to shape our current success.

So when you fill out your ballot papers, if you think things are so bad that you want new people in, and to trust someone unknown and untried with your rates and services, then by all means vote for them.

If you would rather keep things doing really well, then vote for the incumbents.

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