Predict A Decision

Actually, thinking about councils, I thought I should attempt a prediction. A decision is due any time now about where a large casino is going to be authorised in Milton Keynes. There are three candidates; the Xscape building in the centre, the Leisure Plaza near the railway station and the MK Dons football stadium.

Xscape has a lot of leisure activity and is near what is known as theatre district, which sounds sophisticated (and the theatre is fantastic) but is actually a warren of little alleyways and often sees an infestation of drunken 'malcontent's'. The addition of a casino may overload the area.

The Leisure Plaza is an area that is now quite run down, with a long-closed nightclub standing empty, a bowling alley, an ice rink and unfortunately a lap dancing club. Putting a casino here would mean the regeneration of the whole area, with new facilities, enough out of the way to not be a nuisance, but close to road and rail links to bring in custom. (I must declare an interest here; I have links to ice hockey, so my sport would gain in this scenario. I don't mean financially, there isn't any money in it! I mean giving youngsters somewhere to play and locals a bit of exotic sport to watch, in rejuvenated facilities).

The last option is the football stadium. This is well out of the way, which is fine for a sport like football, with large crowds arriving and departing at roughly the same time, during the day or perhaps early evening. For a casino it seems a bit detached, no cohesive reason to be there. But the man responsible for the stadium is a bit of a local hero, with a high profile and crucially, contacts. Now, to the best of my knowledge, he is a lovely bloke and I wish him no harm, but he may have access that no competitor does.

Most people, if taking a bet (pun intended) would plump for the stadium, for exactly these reasons. But is that right? Should a decision be made where the most good can be done, or where (perhaps) the benefit is to the relationship between councillors and local businessmen?

Councils And Car Parking

Back on to another pet subject! Milton Keynes council decided to rake in more money a while back by doing away with free car parking spaces around the shopping and business areas of Central Milton Keynes. The replacement is a two price band scheme, moderate and expensive. The expensive ones are close to the shops and around prime business locations like the Santander building.

Being morons, council people think this is an excellent ruse and they start flipping through executive furniture brochures in anticipation of the wads of cash rolling in. Naturally, the general public who often have to work for a living and only keep their job by at least being competent, parked in the surrounding estates and avoided the new high priced bays, which generally are now empty.

Now, with more Tories on board a rethink is in the wind, to bring back free spaces. I'm sure it is beyond their capacity to understand a concept of serving a community and go back to universal, free parking but hey, it's a step in the right direction. However, the annoyed residents of the streets nearby, have been helped by the council buying a huge number of posts and signs, to turn these areas into 'permit parking' only. I'm guessing that the permits will cost the home owners money. and give a degree of control, unwarranted of course, to the council.

So a mess the council created can be resolved, apparently by the spending of more taxpayers money and by planting a forest of signposts. Come on, there must be some kind of test you have to pass to become a councillor, like genuinely not being able to tie your own shoelaces. Some people, paid no doubt from public funds, may think I am being a bit harsh. If so, show me a quality decision by a council, one that is in the interests of the community, works and isn't run by a relation.

Don't Get Me Started

If someone pulled the rug from under your feet you would notice of course. Which is why politicians go about things very differently. They need to convince you that either you never had a rug in the first place, or that you really should hand over the rug of your own accord. So what they do, is to affect your thinking. Mostly, in what could be called this Post Education world, it is achieved through the lens of Political Correctness, but can be by means more akin to a sleight of hand.

An example. I have a great plan to make some money. I'm going to ask a group of people to give me some money, that they wont get back and with that money I will build a car park. It will be in a prime location, just where they want it and when it is built I will charge them (and to be fair anyone else) to use it. Does that sound outrageous to you? Why would anyone hand over the original 'investment' money? I agree, no reason at all. Now substitute your local council for me, in that scenario. Outrageous. But somehow, these slimy toves have convinced us that what they do is all above board. As I said at the outset though, don't get me started. I'll come back another time about the evils of council car parks.