When a Council Leader Became Chief Executive Too...

I'm all for councils rationising their senior executive positions, but I do wonder about THIS story from Rugby. Apparently the local council leader is taking over as chief executive of the council, in addition to his leader's role. This would be akin to Jim Hacker taking over Sir Humphrey's role too.

Leading a council and being its chief executive are two very different roles and although I have never been a councillor I just cannot see how it would work.

What might work is for two councils to share a chief executive, and maybe combine back office functions to create efficiencies.

From the Rugby Advertiser...

Critics of the move, which was implemented without a council vote, question how suited councillors are to overseeing a complex multi-million pound organisation. Those in favour see the combined role as an ideal way of cutting costs at a time when public spending is under scrutiny.

Explaining how the new role works, Cllr Humphrey said: "Our main concern is that as our budget comes under pressure we are able to find ways to protect frontline services.

"We may be the first authority in the country to combine the roles but we won't be the last."

Cllr Humphrey added: "I had a chat with Eric Pickles at the LGA conference and he was quite straight forward with what he thinks should
be done.

"He's not interested in our management structure and neither are the electorate – and why should they be?

"The crucial question is can an authority the size of Rugby justify paying a chief executive?"

Asked whether officers and the electorate could be assured of officers remaining non-politicised, he said: "I don't think it's an issue. There is a clear distinction between the role of myself, and of those of the managerial officers.

"There is a protocol between councillors and directors and anyone combining the roles has to be very aware of exactly what their role involves.

"Over the past few months the system has worked well. I have attended to the political side of things while the technical side of running the council has been left to the officers."

Cllr Humphrey's financial renumeration for the role was the focal point of a report – which has not been made public – presented to council's cabinet on Tuesday night.

Cllr Humphrey said: "Although the financial aspect of how this works is yet to be finalised, the extra amount I receive will be nowhere near as much as a chief executive."

I don't know much about Councillor Humphrey's background and skill set, but I would question whether every council leader was entirely suited to being chief executive too.

Cameron & the Future of Council Housing

At one of his Cameron Direct events yesterday in Birmingham, David Cameron was asked about council houses by a lady who has two teenagers but only a two bedroom council flat. She has spent the last two years sleeping on a lilo, so her daughters can have rooms to themselves.

Cameron gave her a direct answer, which got him more headlines than he had perhaps bargained for. He suggested that we need to revisit the whole question of long term tenancies as people who families had flown the next could still stay in their four bedroom council house under the current system. He suggested that shorter term tenancies were the way forward. He also made clear that if the system was to change, the tenancies of current tenants wouldn't be affected.

I covered this on my LBC programme last night and the calls came flooding in. Grant Shapps came on to 'clarify' what the PM had said and made the point that there are 1.8 million people on housing waiting lists, so clearly something needs to be done and the current system isn't working. He was followed by Denis MacShane who agreed that it was good to have a debate but it was perhaps not best led by a multi property owning Eton Toff. I think it's called killing with kindness.

The callers were split down the middle with many accepting that housing need was more important than long term tenancy but others fearing this was the thin end of the wedge and the real agenda was to abolish council housing as we know it altogether.

MacShane also thought this was yet another example of Cameron shooting from the hip. I put it to him that it was a refreshing example of a politician answering directly a question which had been put to him by a member of the public. He conceded that he rather liked Cameron's approach, but it had caused so much trouble that he was bound to be pulled up by his advisers in the future.

My own view is that it probably was an off the cuff response, and that I doubt if it was at the top of Grant Shapps's in tray until yesterday evening. But so what? It is indeed a subject which we should debate, and whatever you think of what Cameron said, at least it's generated a discussion.

For what it's worth, I think we should go back to first principles and ask what we want out of social housing in the 21st century. Housing needs have radically changed since the first wave of massive council house construction. House building is at its lowest level since the mid 1920s so now is a good time to think about a longer term approach for social housing.

Want to Become a Lobby Journalist (Only BME's Need Apply)

Anna Raccoon is in fulminating mode. The Parliamentary Press Gallery has launched a scheme by which they will admit non political journalists to the press gallery... but only if they happen to be from a black or minority ethnic background.

It has to be said that the lobby and press gallery are not exactly overflowing with journalists whose skin is anything other than pinkish white and it is to their credit that they are trying to do something about it. But is this the way to go forward? There's something deeply tokenistic about it. What about other minorities? Would TalkSport's Sean Dilley, for example, think it a good thing to encourage more blind people to become political journalists, and if so, shouldn't there be a scheme for blind people?

I won't suggest there should be a scheme for gay journalists, as they are already disproportionately represented...

Andy "Yes, But, No, But" Burnham

There's an hilarious exchange between Labour Uncut and Labour leadership hopeful Andy Burnham, which actually shows him in a rather human light.

Q. (from Jackie): If you had the choice between playing for Everton in an FA cup final, or become the next Labour Prime Minister which would you chose?
A. (after exactly two seconds) Everton, FA Cup final.
Press Secretary: (howls) No!
Q. That is a bold statement!
Press Secretary: I’m going to kill him.
Q. She is going to strangle you when I leave.
Press Secretary: I am.
Researcher Kevin: Can you re-answer that one please Andy.
A. Well it’s a different choice isn’t it! That’s like a one-off thing isn’t it.
Q. (to press secretary) I don’t think that’s the worst answer you know.
A. (to press secretary) Yeah.
Q. ok then, next..
A. Yeah, next!
Researcher Kevin: no you really need to re-answer that one.
A. Ok….Labour Prime Minister.

There, wasn't so difficult, was it?

Vince: Coalition a "Business, not a Marriage"

I interviewed Vince Cable tonight. He described the coalition as a "business, not a marriage". Hmmm. A business is rather easier to wind up than a marriage!

Discuss.

Stephen Pound & the G Spot

I spent an hour this afternoon chairing a Question Time panel for the British Youth Council conference. Taking part were Stephen Pound, Simon Hughes, Chloe Smith and Green MEP Jean Lambert. About 180 16-18 year olds were attending, and a feisty lot they were too.

Stephen Pound didn't get off to a good start because he was the only panel member to speak against the idea of votes for 16 year olds. But he quickly recovered in his next answer on the cuts and delivered quite the most unashamedly populist bit of rabble rousing I've heard since, well, the last one I did myself. Having almost got a standing ovation and whipped up the audience into a frenzy he was then brought down to earth when I delivered a line which got a bigger laugh than he did (and that's quite difficult to achieve, let me tell you). I looked straight at the audience and said in the most deadpan style I could conjure up...

And that ladies and gentlemen, was Mr Stephen Pound, whose latest book "How
to Whip up An Audience By Finding Its G Spot" is on sale outside....

Judging by the audience reaction there would be quite a few purchasers if Mr P was ever to put pen to paper...

But maybe you had to be there...

Tonight on LBC

I've got a cracking phone in programme lined up for you tonight, if you're listening between 7.15 and 10pm on LBC...

7.15-8pm: Adverts for lapdancing jobs in job centres - interviews with Chris Grayling & Peter Stringfellow.

8-9pm David Miliband's plans for a mansion tax: interviews with Paul Waugh and Siobhain McDonagh.

9-10pm Who's the best and worst PM since the war?

Feel free to phone in to the programme on 0845 60 60 973.

You can vote for your best PM since the war on the LBC website HERE.

Brown Third Worst PM Since the War

The FT reports on a study by academics which places Gordon Brown the third worst Prime Minister since the war. Go figure.

I'd rate him worse than that. Quite what Alec Douglas Home has done to deserve the second worst rating is a bit of a mystery.

I would, of course, also put Margaret Thatcher above Clement Attlee. But then you knew that already. And Blair in third place? They're having a laugh!

UPDATE: We'll be covering this on my LBC phone-in programme between 9 and 10pm tonight, so feel free to listen and call in on 0845 60 60 973.

The Sex Appeal of a Bed Full of Baked Beans

I find it distinctly odd that the government has banned job centres from displaying adverts for jobs in companies associated with the 'sex industry'. Apparently it's OK to be a cleaner in a lapdancing club but not a dancer. It's OK to work in an underwear shop, but not an Ann Summers store.

Ridiculous.

The ban will only affect jobs which could lead to exploitation, Employment Minister Chris Grayling said.

Er, well if that's the worry, why not be consistent and ban Lapdancing clubs altogether. Surely if you feel that 'exploitation' is the issue, that would be the logical thing to do.

I was dragged along to a lapdancing club while on a stag night in Detroit once. It was called the Landing Strip. It had all the erotic appeal of a bed full of baked beans. I got talking to one of the dancers, who happened to hail from Rochdale. I remember asking her if she, as a woman, felt she was exploited. She replied. "At $1,000 a night, love, it's not me who's being exploited".

Obviously a Job Centre shouldn't be able to force anyone to go for a job interview in a Lapdancing club, but surely there's nothing wrong with allowing people to be made aware that the jobs exist?

All this has set me thinking, perhaps there's a gap in the market here for a male lap dancing club for women!

I've always wondered why it is that people feel females stripping is a problem, and yet male strippers like the Chippendale's aren't. Double standards at play?

Parish Notice: The Blog Poll

If you've got one of those Total Politics Blog Poll buttons on your blog, can you take it off as voting has now closed and any votes submitted will not now count. I'm told that more than 4,000 votes have been submitted, way upon last year, which is an indication of the number of blogs who carried the button.

It will take some time for the team to process the votes so don't expect the results to be posted on the Total Politics site much before the end of the month or the beginning of September.

Podcast: The 7 Days Show Episode 34

The latest edition of the Seven Days Show is now online.

In this weeks podcast we discuss Ian Huntley; Sarah’s Law; Capital Punishment; ASBOs; Cameron and diplomacy; Welfare reform; Constitutional change; what MPs do in recess; and did you know I'm on on LBC!

To listen to the podcast click HERE, or you can also subscribe to the show in the Tory Radio section in the podcast area of Itunes.

And Down to Number 84...

Oh, the sheer humiliation of it! Down 58 places! Will I ever live it down?

The Independent on Sunday publishes its annual Pink List today and I'm down from 26 last year to 84 this. The one consolation is that they still reckon I'm worth two places higher than Chris Bryant. This is what they say.

84. Iain Dale
Falls 58 places after failing to secure a constituency in this year's election, but has cemented his position as a leading political commentator. He publishes Total Politics magazine and his blog Iain Dale's Diary is among the most respected. More influential outside politics than in.

The funny thing is that when last year's list was compiled I wasn't even trying for a constituency. Just shows you can never row against the conventional wisdom.

These lists are great fun, especially when you see a name and you think 'whhhhhaaaatttt?' I must admit that was my reaction when they listed Gareth Thomas and Mary Portas as joint number ones. And Alan Carr at number 6. Oh dear oh dear.

I was suprised to see that my friend Andrew Pierce was excluded ... because he works for the Daily Mail. Good to see an old prejudice alive and well at the Indy on Sunday!

Attending the Jacqui Smith Charm School

The Mail on Sunday have a front page story about Jacqui Smith applying to be Deputy Chair of the BBC Trust. I cannot understand why she has applied. The chairman, Sir Michael Lyons, is a former Labour councillor so there's no way you could have two Labour people in those positions. And in any case, Jeremy Hunt intends to abolish the Trust.

When asked about her application, Jacqui Smith replied...

"How did you know I had applied. Fuck off."

Charming.

The Price of Slitting Ian Huntley's Throat

Compensation to the families of Holly & Jessica: £11,000

Amount claimed by Ian Huntley in compensation for injuries in prison: £100,000

British justice? Priceless.

If Ian Huntley succeeds in his claim for £100,000 as compensation for the fact that someone slit his throat in prison, we shall know for a fact that our criminal justice system has reached its nadir. He accuses the Prison Service of failing in its duty of care towards him. Hmmmm. I wonder if he thought about his duty of care towards Holly & Jessica when they were in his house. Perhaps their parents should sue him for compensation.

I suspect many people would award a medal to the man who slit Huntley's throat. Did prison officers turn a blind eye? Perhaps. If so, who would blame them? You'd have thought Huntley would be grateful. After all, he has twice tried to top himself. All the throat slitter was doing was trying to finish what Huntley himself had started but failed. Harsh, but true.

The law should be changed to ensure that the Huntleys of this world cannot bring such cases to court and cost the taxpayer thousands.

Parish Notice: Mobile Accessibility Update

A few days ago I added a new facility to enable mobile phone users to access this site more simply. Most of you have welcomed this. However, apparently it also affects iPads. I did add code so any mobile user would automatically connect to the new version, but after several requests I have removed it.

If you want to go back to the new version on mobile phones simply use the following link and then add that to your mobile bookmarks.

http://m.iaindale.com

Simples.

Don't Try This At Home

On Tuesday, I interviewed Matthew Parris. He lives in a riverside flat in Limehouse, so we sat outside on the balcony and chatted away for an hour and a half. As we sat down and I switched on my tape recorder he looked over to the other side of the river and said "Tomorrow night I'm going to swim across the Thames." I looked at him incredulously. "You're mad, I said." "People die doing that." "No, it'll be fine, I've worked it out. At 3am, there won't be any tide." "I really think you ought to think about that again," I urged. "No, it'll be fine. There will be someone here holding a flashlight so I can see where to swim to." I shook my head. "I'm afraid it doesn't work like that. You'll end up half way round the Isle of Dogs."

I emailed Matthew on Thursday to ask how it had gone. "Read my column on Saturday," he replied. Well at least he wasn't dead and I didn't have to torture myself with the thought that had I been more vehement in my warnings he might not have gone through with it!

His column today describes the experience. Now The Times is behind the paywall I am not sure how much of it I am allowed to quote, but here's a taster...

In a couple of weeks I shall turn 61. London has been hot. Online tide tables said that there would be high tides, midweek, in the small hours. My partner (fiercely opposed) was away.

“Come on,” I thought. “Do it.” I told Jonathan, an LSE student who’s working for me. “I’ll come too,” he said. High tide, 03.35 on Thursday morning. Tom would be there on balcony duty. Supper, a few hours’ sleep, then . . .

Astonishing, how fearful I then became. How had I got myself into this? Why hadn’t I kept my mouth shut? Now I understood the subliminal reason I’d never done it before. All that thinking about it and boasting about it had scared me. At midnight, as I lay my head on the pillow, at first sleep would not come.

It’s being woken in the dark that’s worst. I donned trunks and an old singlet to swim in, and some discardable flip-flops. We stood on the balcony. The river was very black. We called a minicab just after 3am to take us under the nearby Rotherhithe Tunnel to the other side. We crept down the Globe Stairs wordlessly, so as not to alert any flat-dwellers, and undressed. Each wondered if he’d be going ahead if it wasn’t for the other...

...The water was choppy but not too cold, and I could feel no current. We swam silently, breaststroke, surprised at the ease. Except that across the water, perspectives were altering unaccountably. Then I saw trees moving behind the buildings on the other side. Why? When I turned to look for Globe Stairs behind us, they were far over to our right. We were being carried upstream. Fast. The tide was still coming in. Fast.

We were breathless, and getting cold. We could see the stilts of a riverside boardwalk some way away, near the Prospect of Whitby pub in Wapping... We pulled our way round to a little creek, plunged across and climbed a high iron ladder on to a road. We had been in the water for perhaps half an hour.

It's a great article about a very daring deed. I've done a few stuid things in my time, but none of them matches that!