Huge Ramsey Rates Rise for 2022

[0bserver]

18 hours ago, Non-Believer said:

The cost of the haulage of refuse to the EFWP will always be a factor. Bin wagons and their running and operating costs are eye watering. Having to haul from the north or south once or twice a day soon adds up in fuel, wages and repairs and running.

Easily averaged out by the majority of the population living within 6 miles of EFWP. 

[GD4ELI]

1 hour ago, quilp said:

Are the rates you're paying well managed and directed where most needed, are the locals getting value for their money?

Talking to me? If so, yes - Cornwall council is well run IMO despite being Tory controlled.

[Mysteron]

Douglas Borough Council's version would be called 'For every £100 we receive to fund services, we waste:'

Edited January 29, 2022 by Mysteron

[AOR]

21 hours ago, Amadeus said:

The minister was actually at the MA meeting last night. The question on local reform, predictably, was raised and he mentioned that it comes up on a regular basis and has done for at least the last 40 years. Like I said elsewhere, two factions on this: the ones who want one authority (or maybe at least the 4 plus 1 model) and the ones who think it’s better to have multiple authorities for more granular service delivery. 
 

I know a good number of my fellow councillors in Douglas are totally up for reform, even if it might mean cutting our own jobs. Hard to get anything moving with so many people involved and many of them against it. Would require political bottle from IOMG to force through and so far, nobody has had big enough cojones to pull the trigger. 

Can I ask, who is the Minister?

Why should they need big thingies? 

Are there figures for what a poll tax would work out at? (various ways of doing that such as all over 18s, or all house owners etc).

[Derek Flint]

On 1/29/2022 at 8:16 AM, quilp said:

Are the rates you're paying well managed and directed where most needed, are the locals getting value for their money?

No. But IMHO neither taxation nor rates were on the Isle of Man either. It’s just that on the island, there no excuse other than resistance to change.

[Non-Believer]

That resistance to change arises from the fact that influential sectors and individuals within our society do extremely well out of the current set-up...

[cissolt]

On 1/29/2022 at 10:40 AM, Mysteron said:

Douglas Borough Council's version would be called 'For every £100 we receive to fund services, we waste:'

It seems that the Douglas rate rise is not to reduce incinerator fees but to increase recycling? Wonder if the rate payers are aware that it's a green tax by stealth.

[Banker]

24 minutes ago, cissolt said:

It seems that the Douglas rate rise is not to reduce incinerator fees but to increase recycling? Wonder if the rate payers are aware that it's a green tax by stealth.

The rise is to cover increasing costs mainly in staff!

Glad I live in Braddan although I am paying for the vanity project aka the new £10m community centre!

[Omobono]

1 hour ago, offshoremanxman said:

It’s very mixed messaging. To his credit Amadeus paid to put an explanation on Facebook which then raised even more questions than answers. I think they’d like it to be about recycling but it does seem to be largely about trying to reduce charges at the EFW plant. 

I hope we are not going to see hundreds of thousand being spent on a new recycling system and bins , most properties in the older parts os Douglas just don't have anywhere to put them , 

also lets see the cost benefit figures for recycling  and what happens when the markets for paper and cardboard are severely depressed and it has more of an environmental impact collecting  the stuff ,and then having to  ship it away at huge cost and inevitable loss    , green waste is another problem in the summer months , 

these councillors need to get real  recycle ' Glass , metals  Poly plastics   yes  but the rest in too volatile ,do what the energy from waste plant was designed for and burn the paper non recyclable plastic and cardboard , if its too expensive then address it through central government ,don't replace one crap system with another 

or get Amadeus to produce the  true figures and cost of running the corporation waste and recycling service  including  salaries, loan charges on vehicles  etc     I bet you will be in for a shock , 

and all this to save £25K   I don't think so !!!!!

[0bserver]

Seems like a Catch 22: 

 

The old council system  - waste and increased charges 

The new council system - waste, increased charges and stealth taxes. 

 

The problem seems to be the council system. 

[HeliX]

3 hours ago, Banker said:

The rise is to cover increasing costs mainly in staff!

DBC staffing costs are down.

[GD4ELI]

1 hour ago, Manx17 said:

All this recycling nonsense, will be for the new Dandara project of a new tip. The money wasted on this island is criminal. People are on their backsides in poverty, and they take and take . To justify their well paid jobs and their vanity projects, the ones who don’t get paid are out their acting like they are doing us a favour and we should be kissing their feet. Watch there will be a water ban on in a few weeks . From water waste cleaning the rubbish to stick in the poxy little box’s, whet they have been burning to keep the incinerator. Millions will be going into this and millions will be wasted on plastic covid tests . Clowns the lot of them. Bin wars will be next were people will be putting there rubbish in other peoples bins . They are not happy unless they are making a drama . Are any of the politicians qualified in anything ?

It's not nonsense, it's ensuring that future generations have a half-way decent planet to inhabit.

[Banker]

2 hours ago, HeliX said:

DBC staffing costs are down.

Doesn’t say that!! Says they are budgeting for £65k reduced staffing & overtime costs in 2022/2023 which won’t happen when they award another large pay rise 

[Non-Believer]

I suspect that what we're seeing here is setting the pattern for years to come, energy costs are going to impact both central and local government more and more. Govt is shackled to the incinerator with no other alternative for refuse disposal and SITA/SURE will be as impacted by fuel costs as much as anybody else - their costs will rise and be passed on down. My concern would be that reducing the refuse delivered to them might also serve to drive up their prices as they seek to maintain their profit (I was advised a couple of years back by an acquaintance with connection up there that it's a very, very profitable operation).

Refuse collection, transport and disposal is probably the biggest expense for any LA, they will reign in and cut other services in order to maintain the core services of refuse disposal and minimise impact on the rates, even though those rate rises might still seem extortionate. We are going to be paying more and more for fewer and fewer services.

Of course, those fewer and fewer services theoretically mean that there could be cuts to expenses and staff not involved in the remaining services. But given the inability of our elected at all levels to address the ongoing increase in PS numbers, let alone enforce any cutbacks, that's unlikely.

Private ratepayers are going to be digging deep for years to come, we better get used to it.

[Boris Johnson]

18 hours ago, Manx17 said:

. Clowns the lot of them. Bin wars will be next

Are bin wars a bit like robot wars but just a bit shitter?