Whilst not in the habit of writing letters to papers, just satisfying myself with reading the views of others, I feel that I must follow up on the letter from Ralph Parry (Cut our taxes – Review February 20, 2009). I agree wholeheartedly that we as taxpayers need to take action now to stop the mandarins from taking even more of our hard earned money. Our elected representatives and the civil servants that we pay for in Coleford need to understand the meaning of the word 'No'! Once they have looked up the meaning of 'No' and fully understand the meaning, here are a few to get on with.
NO, we do not want any rise in community charge or whatever they want to call it today until we start to see tangible evidence that they are running the council as a business not a self serving benefit agency to line their own pockets and others in big businesses that they contract in.
NO, we do not want the 2.5 per cent increase that they are going to push onto us whilst trying tell us that this is value for money. It is not...
NO, we do not want a lot of our taxes paid out in inflated pensions to numerous overpaid staff that are employed in Coleford Towers.
NO, we do not want party politics interfering with the running of local government. At this level most of us elect people as individuals that we think will serve us best. We do not care if they are Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem, UKIP or the Outer Mongolian Stamp Collectors Society. We look at the individuals and how they will serve us at local level. It is not for any one in the councils to sack them that is down to us.
NO, we do not want to be constantly told that the council "has to do this" or "has to do that" due to an edict from central government (or the wombles in Brussels that the people of Great Britain have never been given a clear vote on). The council need to turn around to those above them and say NO, the people are telling us that they do not want that.
NO, we do not want to pay the police more; we want them to get on with being police officers not glorified pen pushers or report writers. We want to see them on the beat around the Forest before we pay them any more of our money. Maybe then we might even see a reduction in accidents when the go-faster brigade realise that there might be a police officer around the corner who is going to apprehend them.
NO, we do not want parking charges which will be monitored and administered by a "for profit" company who will eventually push up the charges to line the pockets of their shareholders as has happened in Gloucester.
NO, we do not want fortnightly rubbish collections. Has anyone thought of bringing this back in-house as a "not for profit" operation (Monmouthshire?) rather than contracting to a "for profit" organisation that possibly gets paid three times for some of their operations (once by us to collect recycled material, once by central government as a "grant" for recycling and once more by the companies that they sell the collected material onto) and also line the pockets of their directors.
NO, we do not want pretty pamphlets shoved through our door telling us how good they think they are. We will make our own minds up about that.
NO, we do not need to have vehicles, paperwork, signs etc decorated with highly expensive logos and writing. A council vehicle or document needs only a small transfer or magnetic attachment saying "Forest of Dean Council" for a vehicle or a simple heading on paperwork as per a standard letter.
NO, we do not want our money used on pretty offices for staff, senseless court cases about sheep, the expenses involved with countless committees, enquiries into this that and the other that councillers and employees can claim more of our money for and, grants to ridiculous minority organisations.
Finally two further points.
NO, I cannot stand for election onto the council much as I would like to, I am too busy trying to earn enough to pay all of my taxes.
NO, I am not ashamed to use my freedom of speech and have my name put at the bottom of this letter. I just feel that as Ralph Perry says the time has come when the silent majority of people stood up for themselves. – John Nicholls, Lydney.