PUTTING LOCAL PEOPLE FIRST

Scottish Conservatives Manifesto for Glasgow City Council election on 3 May

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PERSONAL MESSAGE FROM COUNCILLOR DAVID MEIKLE

CLLR DAVID MEIKLE SCOTTISH CONSERVATIVES, GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL

This is the Scottish Conservatives manifesto for the Glasgow City

Council election. It tells you what we believe in and who will be

standing for the Conservatives in Glasgow.

Conservatives believe in local government. We believe the Council

is elected to serve, not to rule. Once elected, the Council must

consult and listen to you. We believe in devolving power to local

communities so you can have a say over local services.

We believe the Council should provide value for money and efficient services.

We also believe in the benefits of private enterprise and regeneration to change

communities for the better.

We believe in cleaner and greener neighbourhoods with a renewed sense of civic

pride in the City.

We believe in providing the best start in life for our children and this means schools

fit for the 21st century. We also believe we have a duty to look after the most

vulnerable in our society.

We believe in good culture and leisure facilities. We also believe in a safer Glasgow

with good roads and street lighting.

Glasgow is a great City with a proud history and optimistic future. Scottish

Conservatives will always fight for Glasgow. We will be standing a candidate in every

ward in Glasgow giving you the opportunity to vote Conservative.

A vote for the Conservatives is a vote to bring about change in Glasgow. It’s a vote to

elect Conservative councillors who will work hard, who want to serve your

community and who will help improve your quality of life. Support change in Glasgow

by voting for the Conservative candidate standing in your local area on 3 May.

David with Ruth Davidson MSP

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CONTENTS PERSONAL MESSAGE FROM CLLR DAVID MEIKLE 2

DEMOCRACY 4

FINANCE 5

LAND & ENVIRONMENT 6

DEVELOPMENT & REGENERATION 7

SOCIAL CARE 8

EDUCATION 9

COMMUNITY SAFETY & POLICING 10

CULTURE & LEISURE 11

YOUR CONSERVATIVE COUNCIL CANDIDATES 12

For more information about the policies contained in this manifesto, please contact us: Scottish Conservatives, 570 Mosspark Boulevard, Glasgow G52 1SD

0141 882 5916

info@scottishconservatives.com

www.scottishconservatives.com

Promoted by Mark McInnes on behalf of Scottish Conservatives both of 570 Mosspark Boulevard, Glasgow G52 1SD.

DEMOCRACY

Devolution

Support principle of local government

and Councils taking more

responsibility including raising the

money it spends

Glasgow keep all of the business rates

it raises

Devolve more spending to Area

Committees

Openness

Publication of all spending over £500

Prohibit staff using working time on

trade union duties

Reinforce scrutiny of work done for

the Council by outside organisations

Place a limit on contracts let by the

Council to allow for value for money

Consultation

Establish Public Petitions Committee

Council departments and Arms Length

External Organisations must consult

councillors and local residents before

decisions are made

Departments to hold ward surgeries

with councillors to discuss local issues

or policy matters

Media

Permit the broadcasting of Full

Council by radio and TV and internet

Permit use of social media by press,

councillors and public gallery during

meetings

Community

Support Community Councils and

encourage them in areas where there

are none but recognise Councillors

are elected and we should not reduce

their power

Review Community Planning and see

if it is fit for purpose

Ensure Council telephone numbers

are not high rates

Right to Bid introduced to allow

community and voluntary bodies to

take over running of Council services

Right to Buy introduce for community

groups to allow them to gain control of

assets and land

Council structure

Review delegated powers –

councillors are elected not Council

officers

Support elected Lord Provost

Propose elected police commissioner

Object to Executive Committee

making all decisions instead Full

Council should debate and vote on

major decisions and ordinary policy

decisions made by committees which

mirror departments

Committees and Full Council meet

four weekly instead of six weekly

Support Arms Length External

Organisation structure but review

function and encourage mergers

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe in devolving power and listening to local people but

also in openness, transparency and accountability.

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5

FINANCE

Council Tax

Support freeze but ambition to reduce

Council Tax by 10% over four years

Increase Council Tax collection rate by

1%

Council assets

Strategic review of Council including

publication of council assets to

investigate selling of surplus assets

Spending

Reduce spend on taxis and other

expenses

Reduce advertising budget and spend

on external training and conferences

Reduce use of consultants

Cease membership of West of

Scotland European Forum and other

unnecessary bodies

Staff

Strategic review of number of senior

managers with view to reducing by

10% or more

Further review of staff terms and

conditions including sick pay, non-

standard working practices, overtime

and leave entitlement

Streamline press, policy and equality

officers by reductions in staff numbers

Income generation

Revenues from commercial use of

Council properties including City

Chambers

Encourage private sponsorship of

events

Stair lighting costs should be

responsibility of owners/occupiers

and not taxpayer

Budget

Comprehensive review of expenditure

including reserves, capital and

revenue expenditure

Reduce expenditure by focusing on

preventative spending

Introduce competition and

outsourcing in areas of Council where

it will generate reductions in

expenditure

Review pension contributions from

the Council as compared to

contributions from employee

Open Budget process including

consultation with the public

Debt

Reduce Council debt at every

opportunity

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe in efficient local government and never forget that

services are paid for by taxpayers and the maximum value must be achieved

for every pound of the public’s money.

LAND & ENVIRONMENT

Street cleaning and refuse

Strategic review of waste collection

including possibility of outsourcing to

private company

Return to weekly green wheelie bin

collections for single properties

Additional funding to provide Rapid

Response Teams to deal with litter

Additional on street public recycling

bins

Enhance tenement recycling

collection and introduce food waste

recycling

Improve commercial recycling

provision

Enforcement officers to tackle dog

fouling and litter

Fine businesses who do not clean up

the front of their shop

Environment

Energy efficiency measures across the

Council including reducing

temperatures by 2 degree Celsius

Additional funding for allotments on

brown field or similar sites

Support insulation schemes and tax

rebates for energy efficient homes

Introduce more charging points for

electric vehicles

Investigate enabling more community

heating systems to allow local areas

to reduce demand from the grid and

even produce income

Parks

Protect greenspaces and parks from

development and being sold off

Transport

Coordinate transport system through

working with SPT

Support upgrading train stations to

ensure disabled access

Extend opening hours of subway

Support Fastlink project

Encourage more ferry service along

the River Clyde

Support cycling as form of transport

Promote split wide pavements for

cycle and pedestrian use

Increase park and ride facilities

working with SPT

Extend Glasgow Car Club to promote

car sharing

Push for Scottish Government to

provide funding for major roads in

Glasgow

Move Council vehicles to electric

powered

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe every local resident deserves to live in a clean and

green environment with good transport links.

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DEVELOPMENT & REGENERATION

Jobs and business

Support projects to increase

employment and business start-ups

Review of procurement – ensure local

businesses have fair level playing field

when bidding

Right to Bid on tenders from the third

sector should also be encouraged

Reduce taxes on businesses by

looking at Rates to see if the Council

can lower to attract businesses into

local town centres

Roll out Business Improvement

Districts

Support modern apprenticeships for

school leavers and graduates

Offer unused Council premises to

business start ups at low cost rents

Town centres and land

Focus on regenerating town centres

by creating Council’s own special fund

to invest in areas

Derelict and vacant land can blight

areas and the Council must sell land it

owns for development or use it as

temporary greenspace

Privately owned derelict and vacant

land is a problem and the Council

should engage the owners to speed

up development

Introduce parking charge holidays to

promote local shopping areas

Planning

Planning applications going to

committee will no longer have a

recommendation from officers as it

should be matter for Committee to

decide

Support more Conservation Areas in

Glasgow and protect current

conservation areas

Additional funding to provide 2

additional planning enforcement

officers

Promote a bye-law on unauthorised

advertising hoardings which blight

Glasgow

Increase planning application fees

Housing

Work with the GHA to continue with

Second Stage Transfer to local

housing associations

Prioritise the elimination of damp

housing

Combat problem of homelessness

Speed up new building programmes

for socially rented housing

Support mixed community housing

Deal with anti social tenants and

make eviction easier

Support applications for larger family

housing and disabled accessed

housing

Promote using brownfield sites for

housing development and bring empty

homes into use

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe in the power of private enterprise and regeneration to

change communities and the huge benefit from creating jobs and building

quality housing.

SOCIAL CARE

Health

Investigate transferring health related

social work services to NHS

Providers

Review the Council directly providing

care home places and consider if this

service can be provided by other

sources without compromising quality

Children

Engage in youth work as part of

preventative spend to stop young

people becoming involved in negative

activities

Early intervention to stop the number

of looked after children increasing

Community

Develop care communities where

sheltered accommodation is adjacent

to residential housing

Carers

Support carers and voluntary sector

Develop relationship between Council

and carers and carer organisations

Provide appropriate respite hours in

conjunction with voluntary sector

Personalised care

Extend direct payments across the

fullest range of services

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe we have a duty to look after vulnerable people in our

society and support carers and community care groups who do such a

fantastic job.

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9

EDUCATION

Schools

Strategic review of education

including possibility of free schools

and vocational schools run by

parents, businesses and third sector

Capital investment in Education

Phase 5 school building programme

Improve links to colleges to enable

provision of subjects not available at

school

Trust teachers and devolve power to

schools including budgets

Look to more shared campuses to

encourage equality

Support refurbishment of Category D

primary schools

Attainment

Introduce attainment initiatives such

as study sessions, outdoor learning

and music and dance sessions

Introduce second chance centres for

disruptive pupils and aim to reduce

absence and exclusions

Campus police officers should be

considered

Food

Review breakfast provision – target

free breakfasts to schools in areas

with highest SIMD score (28 schools)

Additional services

Provide free transport at statutory

level of 2 and 3 miles similar to other

local authorities

Review janitorial provision and school

deep cleaning schedule to ensure

efficiencies

Ensure special needs education and

English as an Additional Language

support is provided to ensure every

child is catered for

Early Years

This important stage in development

should be priority

Access to child care must be made

more available

Enterprise education

Make available enterprise education

in all secondary schools

Allow schools to be a base for young

entrepreneurs to start up non profit

businesses

Accountability

Allow a nominated representative of

Parent Councils to attend Education

committee

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe in the power of good early years, primary and

secondary education to transform the lives of young people.

COMMUNITY SAFETY & POLICING

Policing

Additional funding to Strathclyde

Police to provide additional 30

officers across Glasgow

Capital spend on CCTV cameras in hot

spots across Glasgow

Curb problem of begging

Roads

Capital spend on street lighting and

roads and pavements

Investigate ways of reducing

disruption caused by utility companies

on roads

Support schemes to tackle speeding

traffic

Install more electronic speed signs

Encourage partners to deliver driver

education to reduce speeding,

accidents and injuries amongst young

and newly qualified drivers

Justice

Restorative justice should be

encouraged more so that the

community see offenders making a

positive contribution

Crack down on underage drinking and

off licences selling to those under age

Community action

Enhance Neighbourhood

Improvement Volunteer scheme

including encouraging winter wardens

who will be provided with shovels, grit

Credit unions will be promoted to

provide a safe lending environment to

vulnerable people

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe it is your right to live in safe neighbourhoods with

strong policing and good quality roads and lighting.

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CULTURE & LEISURE

Civic Pride

Implement civic pride agenda to

promote Glasgow

Teach Glasgow’s history in schools

Encourage schools to visit City

Chambers

Sport

Children should be active and sport

should be a regular part of the

curriculum

Invest in community sports facilities

and allow access to school pitches

Community trusts encouraged to take

over the care of pitches

Support Commonwealth Games 2014

and ensure they are a success and

provide a legacy

Museums

Promote our museums, cultural

events and festivals

Investigate ways of income generation

at museums

Community

Make school buildings, libraries more

available for community use

Non operational and surplus property

made available or transferred to

community groups

Cycling

Investigate feasibility of sponsored

bike scheme

WHAT WE BELIEVE Conservatives believe in the vital contribution made to the vibrancy and

wellbeing of our communities by cultural and leisure services.

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YOUR CONSERVATIVE COUNCIL CANDIDATES ANDREW MORRISON LINN

JOHN ANDERSON PARTICK WEST

ROBERT MCELROY NEWLANDS/AULDBURN

SUSAN MCCOURT GARSCADDEN/SCOTSTOUNHILL

CHRIS MORGAN GREATER POLLOK

MARTYN MCINTYRE DRUMCHAPEL/ANNIESLAND

JAYNE ANN MORGAN CRAIGTON

EUAN ERSKINE MARYHILL/KELVIN

HARRIET MURDOCH GOVAN

MARGARET WALKER CANAL

DAVID MEIKLE POLLOKSHIELDS

JASON ECCLES SPRINGBURN

RUSSELL MUNN LANGSIDE

KENNAN ALEXANDER EAST CENTRE

TOM CONNOR SOUTHSIDE CENTRAL

RICHARD SULLIVAN SHETTLESTON

SCOTT GILLESPIE CALTON

RAYMOND MCCRAE BAILLIESTON

DAVID BARNES ANDERSTON/CITY

KIM SCHMULIAN NORTH EAST

ALEXANDER INGLIS HILLHEAD