LETTERS | STATESIDE | CHRIS GAME No change is big change in giddy world of local politics
bitter contests in 2015 and 2017, the group has had enough, or maybe, given the election result, is content.
Certainly Cllr Ward made the right noises after the election putting his focus on the ‘cleaner streets’ agenda, that is dealing with the fly-tipping epidemic and ensuring there is little further disruption to bin services after the trauma of last year.
As well as bins his inbox is stuffed with these demands:
He talked about fixing the potholes, and presumably with it the broken relationship with Birmingham’s long-term roads contractor Amey as seen in the ongoing legal dispute over the quality of repairs.
Jobs and homes remain a priority, but should get a little easier to deliver with the help of the West Midlands Combined Authority’s devolved budgets.
There is the difficult work of stopping the social care budget, which is about two-thirds of council spending, spiralling further out of control and trying to get efficiencies that either work or make the savings promised.
Ensuring that after a decade the child protection service improves to the extent that inspectors no longer describe it as inadequate. There has been progress on this vital work, but
It rules out frivolous challenges which, while fun for us in the media, can be so distracting and divisive
it has been slow and expensive.
Delivery of the 2022 Commonwealth Games, which Cllr Ward was a leading figure in, securing for Birmingham and the region, without impacting on day to day council budgets.
And finally the immediate issue of telling the public what must be done to improve our air quality – and whether that involves congestion or pollution charges on city centre traffic.
Key to delivering this package will be his top team. Cabinet applications are being taken now ahead of an announcement on Monday.
There are two vacancies, with roads chief Stewart Stacey no longer on the council and veteran Carl Rice stepping down from the cabinet job in charge of children’s services which he only held since October.
Cllr Ward inherited the cabinet from his predecessor and so may want to fill posts with allies or put forward those he sees as more able to deliver. There are reports of quite a number of Labour councillors applying for cabinet.
He has, as should be expected, been tight-lipped about his thinking here.
And into that vacuum rumours abound.
It seems highly likely that children’s services will be split into distinctive education and social care roles.
Quinton councillor Kate Booth, a former school leader, North Edgbaston councillor Sharon Thompson, who has championed policies to tackle homelessness, and former cabinet member John Cotton, who represents Glebe Farm and Tile Cross, are widely thought to be in the frame for promotion.