16/12/2012 Sunday Politics North East and Cumbria

In the North-East. How much longer well our councils be able to afford

displays of civic pride like Christmas lights and flowerbeds in

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2170 seconds

We start with the welcome news that unemployment is down again by

11,000 in the North East. It has also fallen in Cumbria. Before we

get too carried away, it is still the highest rate in the country and

public sector jobs are still going. Tom Blenkinsop, we may have the

highest rate in the country, but it is falling fast? It has fallen

faster him this region than other regions. But we also have to look

at the adjusted rates. There is still a severe problems with the

economy, particularly the regional economy. He did not is that the

figures for your own concerted -- constituency... Why is it proving

difficult, more difficult, to cut it in this region? It is an

indicator of the national economy. There are anomalies of the them

back the figures. I want to know how we get those statistics. Unpaid

work experience is being counted as employment. That is an issue that

we need to closely examine with the government. Fiona haul, the

headline figure is falling. trend is continuing to go down, it

is not a one off will stop it is the largest a drop in youth

unemployment since 2001 because at the coalition government policies

are tackling this. There is that the youth contract, the Work

programme and new jobs being created. We know that a lot of

public sectors are still to go. Lots of our councils are planning

redundancies. The trend is in the right direction and we have made a

good start. We will carry on putting programmes in place to make

sure that there are alternative opportunities for people who do

lose their jobs in the public sector. It is about creating more

jobs. It is difficult for many young people to get into work, so

it we have to make sure that those programmes continue. For the moment,

thank you. Our top story this week is the rise

in rail fares. Passengers are being warned of and above the rate of

inflation increased in real fears. We have got reaction to proposed

there rises from travellers on Tyneside. Passengers should pay

some of the cost. Real fears are fairly steep. They can be difficult

to pay for, but it depends on the balance of subsidy versus what the

clients pay. I commute four days a week into York and it would affect

we pretty badly. I think that there should be something in place an

order to keep that from happening. I think it is better for the

environment if more people use the trains. I think the users of the

service paying more than the general taxpayer makes sense.

whole way they have gone with privatisation does not work. Prices

have been increasing for so many years. You do not get as good a

service as you debt in the past. I think the rail travellers is taxed

enough and it should be a burden shared. Let's speak to Craig

Johnston of the RMT. He has been lobbying MPs in London this week.

Is it not the fairest way to ensure that the biggest contribution to

affairs comes from people who use the trains? We need to look at the

way the industry is structured and the costs of that. If you look in

real terms, the privatised rail industry is getting around three

times more than British Rail in real terms in terms of subsidy. The

taxpayers lose out. Passengers lose out. We end up with train fares in

Cumbria other North East of England that are prohibitive and drive

people back into the car. The money has to come from somewhere however?

The train operating companies are blaming the government. the

industry needs to be denationalised? But that will

divert resources away from what we need, which is an improved rail

service. You can do away with a rail franchises are they come up

for renewal. Let's look at another waste. The debacle around their

west-coast mainline has caused millions upon millions of pounds.

�100 million thrown down the drain. That is a total waste and that has

basically given you an indication of what rail privatisation has been

since it started. But passenger numbers are still rising so people

are still prepared to do this. People do not have alternatives.

They have to use the railway so they are being ripped off. To get

into London before 10 o'clock, it will cost you around three had a

�30. -- �330. The reality of it is, if you want the railway to work for

passengers and communities, they have to be affordable.

Privatisation has been a rip-off. The metro dispute, you what

cleaners to get three transport? Where is the cost in giving

cleaners who work on the metro system a free pass? These are

cleaners who on the minimum wage. This dispute was also about wages.

At a time when the Labour Party is saying we should be encouraging a

living wage, it was said... It has to be paid for, yes, but workers

are being treated... There will be more action on this? There will be

more action and it will continue until we get a fair and reasonable

deal. Nexus should give those cleaners a free pass. It would not

cost them a penny. Do you think it is acceptable to go back to the

increases that are threatened this year? We would like fares to go up

according to the rate of inflation. The Liberal Democrats have said

that this week. We have managed to get it down to a rate of inflation

plus 1%. What we are managing to do with that money is a massive

investment in a electrification. We all know that it actually will

create thousands of jobs in the North East in the long run. Ideally,

fears it would not be so high, but we are getting value out of it.

argument is that it could have been a lot worse. It was inflation plus

3%? Taking a ball was just said about electrification of the

railway, we have seen already that north of you, there is not

electrification happening. For a North East rail travellers,

particularly in my area, there is no improvement whatsoever in terms

of service. In terms of the fears, do you think that their visors are

acceptable and if not, what is the alternative? We have to go back to

the table and look at the policy and how fears are cockily to. What

is not acceptable is to waste all �100 million on the West Coast Main

Line. We have to look at the rail system and looking other

nationalised system where there is public ownership as a model.

that what you favour? No, but it should be used as the benchmark.

This is a living standards issue. Petrol and diesel is going up,

energy bills are going up, inflation for the average person is

going up it is a crunch issue for the economy. The argument is that

that we are going to get nothing for this extra money in the North

East? We are getting it because we are getting a lecture vacation

elsewhere. -- electrification. no improvement to suburban

services? We will keep pushing for that, but you do not get everything

straightaway. We are getting something out of this. Do you think

the franchise system deserves to continue? It has had problems, but

I do not think the answer is nationalisation. I do agree that it

is a public advantage that people use the trains. We would like to

see real fears rise in with inflation or less than inflation,

but that is not where we are in the current economic crisis.

Thank you. Christmas lights in our towns and cities apart of their

festive season. But for how much longer? Local councils are facing

tough budget decisions. In austerity Britain, is there a place

for demonstrations of civic pride? Middlesbrough's Albert Park. Neat

flowerbeds, attractive sculptures, for 146 years, the very epitome of

civic pride. This place was set up all those years ago by the town's

first MP Henry Bolckow. The idea was simple. A people's park. A free

facility where the townspeople could escape the area's many

industries. But today, just like then, grim reality was just around

the corner. This week, Middlesbrough Council are looking

at budget cuts of �14 million, 200 jobs to go as well. Flowers and

parks are all very nice, but in this age of austerity, can we

really afford civic pride? Middlesbrough Council does plan to

cut �125,000 from budgets which cover parks and flowerbeds. But

that will still leave several thousand pounds spent on things

that the council does not legally have to provide at all.

I think that we have got to listen to what the public say. They like

to see a nice pleasant area, a green area and the council to keep

it in good condition. The actual cost of providing the flowers in

Middlesbrough is �40,000 per year, but in addition to that, we do get

in �30,000 sponsorship from businesses. I think we have to try

and afford civic pride. But the way we deliver it has to be done

differently. 16 miles away, another council are still paying for a

service that it does not legally have to. This is Darlington Civic

Theatre, a couple of years ago it was threatened with closure. While

a nearby council Arts Centre has shut, this place has stayed open.

Two years ago, we were spending �450,000 supporting this building.

But with some accountancy moves and by driving management costs down,

at the moment, this facility cost us around �100,000 a year and we

are looking to bring those costs down further. These are not bolt-on

extras as far as the people of Darlington are concerned. If you

asked them what does their community mean, what is it about

Darlington they love, what adds value to lives? I think they would

say this theatre. But the optional extras these

councils will pay for also include making the local high street look

all Christmasy. Turning the centre of Newcastle into a winder

wonderland costs the council �140,000 a year. But with �90

million of savings to find, the council is looking to cut the cost

of Christmas. It will continue to pay for Christmas lights until 2013,

but after that, it will be up to commercial sponsors. That means, if

you are a company, your name can be up there. The council says even

Grey's Monument could carry to temporary sponsorship to pay for

Christmas lights. Private firms already pay �50,000 a year towards

additional decoration in Newcastle. At a time of austerity, should we

expect our councils to shell out for fairy lights? I think that the

council owes it to the people. They get plenty of money. I am sure

there's other areas they could take it from. It is a bit disappointing,

isn't it? In your view, it is the job of the council to pay for the

Christmas lights? Yes. They look after the city. If the alternative

is having everything sponsored by people, then yes. The council

should keep paying for it? I would like them to, yes. But the Labour

council's Christmas cuts have had backing from some of their fiercest

critics. The Lib Dems say they have made the right choices.

constituents talk to me about their concerns about library closures and

respite care centres. I know it is important to keep the Christmas

shoppers coming into town, but on this particular occasion, we could

be making savings in this particular area rather than the

money I would like to see put into my local library certainly. Whether

it is sparkling lights or pretty flowerbeds, for years, our councils

have paid for stuff that makes us feel better about where we live,

but for how much longer? Tom Blenkinsop, can you justify

spending on Christmas lights when you were having to cause libraries

and plate -- closed libraries and care homes? I can understand the

logic... The what about parks? Parks are a far more permanent

feature than Christmas lights. In my constituency, they have always

clubbed together and got local businesses involved to pay for the

Christmas lights. It depends on the local set up and the locality. But

I think Newcastle has had the right priorities in terms of local public

services for people. Why should we expect councils to pay for these

things? In the past, generous benefactors and local this as

people had put her hands in their pocket. Looking at corporate

sponsorship is a sensible move. But it is always about public and

private partnerships. You will always have some public input in

terms of the infrastructure. But between Christmas lights and saving

a library, I would prioritise the library. The Government has made no

allowance for this. Christmas lights can be a economically

important to many towns. This is about quality of life. There is a

role for traders, even in small communities. In fact, in local

communities, in small communities, it is the community that have done

it. I think it is reasonable to get sponsorship to do the Christmas

lights. I do think with parks and gardens, there is a different thing

to bear in mind in that everybody benefits from a public space. If

you allow a public space to become neglected, it is an invitation to

vandalism. But the choices are harsh. It could be a choice between

maintaining a park and closing a care home. Some councils have

managed not to close the libraries. There are difficult choices to make

and I think that the councils do what they can. Darlington Council

decided to keep his theatre for economic reasons as much as

anything else. But when it comes to public art, can you justify it?

That was seen as a public investment, to try to attract

visitors to the area. They are decisions made by the local

authority to try to do that. will they be able to do that in the

future? It is very hard for local authorities to balance those

budgets. They are not dictating the budgets. In many areas, local

authorities are simply the messengers. But different councils

approaching it in different ways? That is for the electorate to

decide. They will decide which party runs are the local authority.

We are facing such hairy cuts, -- such a heavy cuts... Public

services will be hit even harder. There is a risk that something like

the Angel of the North would not happen now. It got an Arts Council

grant. It was not done that project manager for the council.

council was a driver? It supported it. But they supported it because

it was not public money going in. The cuts are there because the

economy was in a mess. There are other things. The Baltic, the Sage,

the Millennium Bridge might never have happened. Councils have to

decide and they have difficult decisions. Some things you do, the

ad revenue and bring visitors in and that is important. Thank you

very much. The pressure on budgets and mean that many people are

trying to raise extra of money. They are doing it in a variety of

ways. Inside out has been investigating some of the ways they

are trying to bridge that funding gap and you can see that tomorrow.

It is our final programme before Christmas. You repay we could use

some best of music on our 60 seconds this week. But

unfortunately, we are not allowed The population of the North East

has grown by 2%. That is since 2001. 400 civil service jobs should stay

in Darlington. This is a critical decision for our time. Business

continuity, retention of skills and the local economy, I trust that the

department will decide to keep these jobs in Middlesborough.

new MP, and debate Donald, -- and the McDonald made a speech about