Police called to Bolton Town Hall as emotions run high at budget meeting

9:17pm Wednesday 20th February 2013 in News

SECURITY at Bolton Town Hall had to call the police for back-up tonight as the controversial budget meeting descended into chaos.

Council chiefs are tonight set to approve a controversial budget that includes a 3.5 per cent council tax rise as well as £43.6 million of spending cuts and hundreds of job losses.

As the meeting started, The Mayor of Bolton, Cllr Guy Harkin, asked the people packed into the public gallery to behave themselves, recalling protests at last year's budget meeting.

His plea was immediately met by one member of the public shouting: “Get on with it”.

The meeting was then adjourned for five minutes while he was ejected.

A large banner reading “NO MORE CUTS” was also draped from the balcony before being removed.

The public gallery then had to be cleared altogether at about 7.30pm after more disruption, when a woman started heckling the mayor.

The public were allowed back in after the mayor identified Tom Hanley, the chairman of the save Bolton’s libraries campaign, as being particularly disruptive.

Council leader Cllr Cliff Morris sat down with Mr Hanley for a five-minute talk before he agreed to leave.

Town hall security then called for police back-up, and one officer arrived to help contain the situation.

The meeting proper only got under way after 8pm, more than an hour after it was scheduled to start.

Earlier, about 100 protesters gathered outside the town hall’s staff entrance brandishing placards, shouting, chanting and whistling.

Councillors entering the town hall were greeted with chants of “Labour councillors show some guts, get off your knees and fight the cuts”.

Protester Roy Whittle, aged 83, from Smithills, worked for the council for 30 years until 1994.

He said: “I’m protesting against the budget cuts because they’re cutting services and putting up rates.”

Bolton Unison branch chairman Matt Kilsby said: “I don’t think the council realises the strength of feeling about the cuts.”

Comments(18)

mondoosh says...
9:34pm Wed 20 Feb 13

How about cut the "fat-cats" pay packets and tell em get the bus to work or train and live how the other half live!!!

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Robert2012 says...
9:53pm Wed 20 Feb 13

Shame all these people weren't protesting about the labour government spending someone else's money and into putting us in this mess....

Shame all these people aren't protesting at our labour council that have transformed this once great town to the mess it's currently in....

Hypocrites

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Reality50 says...
9:55pm Wed 20 Feb 13

Trade union leader fat cats won't be affected of course!.The public sector unions were quiet as a mouse when Labour were bankrupting this country. Socialism doesn't work!.

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bernihanley says...
10:02pm Wed 20 Feb 13

Reality50 wrote:
Trade union leader fat cats won't be affected of course!.The public sector unions were quiet as a mouse when Labour were bankrupting this country. Socialism doesn't work!.
Check your facts Robert 2012 they were!! How about you what are you doing to help fight against the worst crisis the working class people of this town is about to witness? Get on side we need you!!

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bernihanley says...
10:06pm Wed 20 Feb 13

wrong reply entered to reality 50 meant for robert 2012!
Reality 50 point taken. but what is your advice on the way forward I'm listening?

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bernihanley says...
10:12pm Wed 20 Feb 13

Check your facts Robert 2012 they were!! How about you what are you doing to help fight against the worst crisis the working class people of this town is about to witness? Get on side we need you!!

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grimtown says...
10:14pm Wed 20 Feb 13

cheif exec £200,000 says it all robbing bastards delivering ****

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Reality50 says...
10:22pm Wed 20 Feb 13

There has to be realism on all sides. We all agree Morris is useless and has made this town a laughing stock but the fact is he and his cronies receive much less from central government in resources hence why cuts must be made.The question is what cuts need to be made and sadly some cuts are unpalatable. From a local perspective the councils hands are tied to a large degree but for the country as a whole to recover there needs to be realism from all including the Left. Cutting foreign aid and withdrawing from the EU would be a start. Banks starting to lend again at reasonable rates would be another and maybe a slight rise in tax. The facts are we will have austerity for the next 5-10 years whether we like it or not. I have no faith in the 3 main political parties to sort this mess out that the country is in. Miliband Cameron and Clegg are second rate even third rate politicians.

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xxenigmaxx says...
10:58pm Wed 20 Feb 13

rats and sinking ship comes to mind

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Wigan Trotter says...
7:50am Thu 21 Feb 13

All the towns are in a mess and nothing to do with which political party has control of a Council or even the Government.

All to do with the loss of our manufacturing industry which was the backbone of our economy, fewer proper jobs and a country being flooded with immigrants which is putting more strain on a already weak economy, benefit system and the NHS.

So get use to it as it will get even worse.

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Anne Crompton, Community Correspondent says...
8:11am Thu 21 Feb 13

As some of you have said, the council has no choice but to make cuts. The Council Tax has been frozen for a couple of years, something the government has imposed upon councils as well as their withdrawal of funding. Quite a few holders of executive positions have taken voluntary severance in order to help matters. Anyone who thinks that Bolton Council and any other council is to blame have had their head firmly buried in the sand for some years only to lift it up at the first declaration of a rise in Council Tax.

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BWFC71 says...
9:32am Thu 21 Feb 13

Anne Crompton, Community Correspondent wrote:
As some of you have said, the council has no choice but to make cuts. The Council Tax has been frozen for a couple of years, something the government has imposed upon councils as well as their withdrawal of funding. Quite a few holders of executive positions have taken voluntary severance in order to help matters. Anyone who thinks that Bolton Council and any other council is to blame have had their head firmly buried in the sand for some years only to lift it up at the first declaration of a rise in Council Tax.
So can you explain the Councils reserves groeing 4 fold in the last 3 years from £20million to over £80million?

Or how about all council staff having apay-freeze for 4 years whilst councillors themselves have been having infaltion-busting pay-rises?

What about the additional income from shares such as MAG, and from parking fines (minus 3rd party costs)

Or losing income such as Market Hall, Water Place, cost of knocking down the old college on Manchester Road, cost of 3rd party security foims where they have knocked down old council buildings? Cost of the rubbish town logo - just think of all the various colours of paint required and man-hours to paint - all costs (what the hell was wrong with the Town Hall being the logo???), or what about off-shooting Bolton At Home as a separate company with nothing to do with Bolton Council - thus losing even more income???

The Council, and Councillors do have their fair shre of the blame.

Or constructions such as

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8cup49 says...
9:42am Thu 21 Feb 13

Sorry Anne I think you are a bit foolish to think that executives have come forward with open arms to say , we will help save the Council, no they have asked to see the monetary figures that they would receive also possible release of their pension and gone bloody hell I'm off NOT for the good of the Council but because they have been offered a great package. A question you should be asking is if executives have gone who is picking up their work and if it is shared with others why were they employed in the first place. There are staff in the Council who are willing to go but refused because it does not suit the council to let them go what they should do is look at those who do not want to go and redeploy them to the post of staff who are willing to go. Don't say they do because I know of quite a few people that this has happened to.

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atlas123 says...
9:43am Thu 21 Feb 13

Bn could you plead let us know when meeting minutes are available on the website.

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rnorris says...
10:59am Thu 21 Feb 13

BWFC71 wrote:
Anne Crompton, Community Correspondent wrote:
As some of you have said, the council has no choice but to make cuts. The Council Tax has been frozen for a couple of years, something the government has imposed upon councils as well as their withdrawal of funding. Quite a few holders of executive positions have taken voluntary severance in order to help matters. Anyone who thinks that Bolton Council and any other council is to blame have had their head firmly buried in the sand for some years only to lift it up at the first declaration of a rise in Council Tax.
So can you explain the Councils reserves groeing 4 fold in the last 3 years from £20million to over £80million?

Or how about all council staff having apay-freeze for 4 years whilst councillors themselves have been having infaltion-busting pay-rises?

What about the additional income from shares such as MAG, and from parking fines (minus 3rd party costs)

Or losing income such as Market Hall, Water Place, cost of knocking down the old college on Manchester Road, cost of 3rd party security foims where they have knocked down old council buildings? Cost of the rubbish town logo - just think of all the various colours of paint required and man-hours to paint - all costs (what the hell was wrong with the Town Hall being the logo???), or what about off-shooting Bolton At Home as a separate company with nothing to do with Bolton Council - thus losing even more income???

The Council, and Councillors do have their fair shre of the blame.

Or constructions such as
Your spot on.......

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rnorris says...
11:02am Thu 21 Feb 13

Anne Crompton, Community Correspondent wrote:
As some of you have said, the council has no choice but to make cuts. The Council Tax has been frozen for a couple of years, something the government has imposed upon councils as well as their withdrawal of funding. Quite a few holders of executive positions have taken voluntary severance in order to help matters. Anyone who thinks that Bolton Council and any other council is to blame have had their head firmly buried in the sand for some years only to lift it up at the first declaration of a rise in Council Tax.
Absolute rubbish. Been financial wastage in the council for years. Spent thousands on changing the LOGO....Priorities ?

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Marzi30 says...
2:28pm Thu 21 Feb 13

I'm assuming Anne Crompton is Community Correspondent for the BN ? If so this doesn't surprise me, we are living in a Town that is visibly going down hill and being served by a Council who have nobody's interest at heart only their own. To try and say the mess this Town is in is not the fault of the Council is as blinkered as the Council who Anne and her sycophantic colleagues at the Bolton News arse lick to at every given opportunity. Yes Executive positions have taken early severance, this is not done with the best interests of the Town at heart it has been done purely to safeguard their pensions and on many occasions these executives have been retained as consultants. This is the kind of investigative journalism we want from our local newspaper, not just a mouthpiece for our incompetent Council. The new BN offices are central to the Town centre, I suggest Anne and her fellow journalists take a walk around it during their lunch hour and attempt to report upon how Bolton Council are regenerating the Town Centre. They will see nothing but derelict demolition sites, boarded up shops, Charity Shops, Pawnbrokers, Payday Loan/Cheque Cashing shops, Pound Shops and Bookmakers. The Council may have no choice but to make cuts but they also have a duty to try and make the best of a bad job with the Town centre, have a look no further than Bury to see how this can be achieved.

If Anne took the effort to read the comments posted on here she might realise that her readers are far from happy with this Council, I would much prefer somebody with some balls at the BN to start reporting upon the real state of affairs at the Ivory Towers of the Town Hall, such as Councillors' attendances at meetings, Councillors' voting records and Councillors' expenses claims in detail. If she has nothing better to say then I suggest she says nothing at all.

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Robert2012 says...
8:02pm Thu 21 Feb 13

What am i doing Bernihanley???...

Let me tell you what I'm doing...I'm a self employed bricklayer...I work 6 days a week in a hard manual job in all weathers to provide for my family..If i dont work I dont get paid...I have had one holiday in four years...I have no pension...I have no 13 weeks hoiday, no final salary pension, flexi time or training days...

So if you think I have any sympathy for councillors or union reps, teachers or other public sector workers, then your sadly mistaken.

You were very conspiquos (sp) by your abscence during the previous governments reign when good ol Gordon was spunking away our millions.

Do i think that these cuts will reduce the woeful service that I get from my current bin men...believe me it couldnt get any worse,

Morris has bankrupted Bolton Hospital and reduced Bolton to a shanty town...and a few 1970's union officials, blowing a couple of horns in the dark is going to acheive nothing..

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