3612% increase in LBH spend brings bill to more than £1.2m
Figures compiled by The TaxPayers' Alliance have revealed that amount spent by Hounslow Council on communications has leapt a staggering 3611.7 per cent in the past ten years making theirs the largest increase out of all the 450 local authorities in the country.
Examining figures provided by Hounslow Council, who are required by law to keep a separate account of their expenditure on publicity, The TaxPayers' Alliance found that spending had leapt from £32,241 in 1995-96 to £1,203,000 in 2005-06 (NB. this expenditure was made by the previous administration. 2006-07 figures were not available.)
Hounslow publish their own monthly in-house magazine HM which is distribution to residents throughout the borough and would account for a sizeable chunk of publicity spend. In contrast less than 0.1 per cent of spend has been with community web sites such as www.chiswickw4.com and www.brentfordtw8.com despite them being the most popular media in the parts of the borough in which they operate.
With council tax bills having doubled over the last ten years, The TaxPayers' Alliance launched a series to review expenditure by local authorities to highlight areas of spending that could and should be reduced. Entitled ‘Council Spending Uncovered’ the series of reviews challenges the claim that local authorities are short of money by publishing figures that will allow council taxpayers to decide for themselves whether their local authority is spending their money wisely. This first paper examined the increase in local authority spending on publicity over the last decade and uncovered some startling results.
With a history of excessive spending on branding, image and publicity, it comes as little surprise that Ealing Council’s spend for 2005-06 came in at £2,979,000, an increase of 132 per cent over the decade. However, not all council’s increased their publicity spend. Hammersmith and Fulham spent £669,000 in 2006-07, down 11 per cent from the £751,000 spent in 1996-97. In 2005-06, however, the council spent £1,030,000 on publicity, meaning that the 1 year fall in spending was 35 per cent.
“If Hammersmith and Fulham can reduce publicity spending by 35 per cent in one year and make other efficiency savings and reduce council tax by 3 per cent, then it must be possible for other councils to follow suit.” said Matthew Elliott, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, who adds “It’s important for council taxpayers to see just how their hard-earned money is being spent by town halls. With council tax doubling in the past decade, it’s extremely disappointing that councils have chosen to double their publicity budgets over the same period. With the internet cutting the cost of communication, it shouldn’t be difficult for local authorities to find savings in this area and bring council tax down.”
Council |
Council Spending on publicity, £ Increase |
Growth |
Ranking by Spending |
Ranking by Population |
|
1996-97 |
2006-07 |
||||
| Hounslow* | £32,411 | £1,203,000 | 3611.70% | 124 | 103 |
| Richmond upon Thames | £45,714 | £753,000 | 1547.20% | 166 | 129 |
| Haringey* | £844,000 | £3,639,000 | 331.20% | 25 | 96 |
| Greenwich | £743,000 | £3,189,000 | 329.20% | 32 | 99 |
| Barking and Dagenham | £614,000 | £2,316,000 | 277.20% | 60 | 143 |
| Southwark | £1,454,026 | £5,057,000 | 247.80% | 8 | 72 |
| Havering* | £363,000 | £1,168,000 | 221.80% | 128 | 94 |
| Bromley | £287,197 | £907,000 | 215.80% | 147 | 58 |
| Wandsworth | £588,725 | £1,746,975 | 196.70% | 85 | 67 |
| Lewisham | £721,000 | £2,130,000 | 195.40% | 69 | 76 |
| Camden | £1,298,357 | £3,505,913 | 170.00% | 27 | 93 |
| Ealing | £1,284,000 | £2,979,000 | 132.00% | 37 | 55 |
| Kensington and Chelsea | £557,000 | £1,267,000 | 127.50% | 119 | 130 |
| Redbridge | £1,108,000 | £2,474,000 | 123.30% | 53 | 80 |
| Merton* | £785,000 | £1,687,000 | 114.90% | 91 | 117 |
| Bexley | £322,000 | £684,000 | 112.40% | 176 | 101 |
| Brent | £682,000 | £1,297,000 | 90.20% | 115 | 70 |
| Tower Hamlets | £1,289,357 | £2,300,000 | 78.40% | 61 | 108 |
| Kingston upon Thames | £427,018 | £711,000 | 66.50% | 174 | 157 |
| Croydon | £618,000 | £952,000 | 54.00% | 145 | 45 |
| Enfield | £1,420,000 | £2,151,000 | 51.50% | 68 | 64 |
| Lambeth | £1,024,000 | £1,299,000 | 26.90% | 114 | 69 |
| Barnet | £923,000 | £1,118,000 | 21.10% | 133 | 47 |
| Hackney | £1,587,908 | £1,711,000 | 7.80% | 88 | 110 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | £751,000 | £669,000 | -10.90% | 178 | 137 |
| City of London | - | £1,318,000 | - | 112 | 457 |
| Greater London Authority* | - | £5,163,000 | - | 6 | 1 |
| Harrow | - | £1,394,000 | - | 107 | 106 |
| Hillingdon | - | £1,804,000 | - | 81 | 83 |
| Islington | - | £2,322,000 | - | 59 | 126 |
| Newham | - | £4,018,000 | - | 18 | 84 |
| Sutton | - | £1,076,000 | - | 138 | 127 |
| Waltham Forest | - | £1,439,000 | - | 105 | 100 |
| Westminster | - | £3,277,000 | - | 30 | 91 |
| Regional average | £790,789 | £2,021,320 | 155.60% | - | - |
| *2005-06 data latest available (i.e. 2006-07 data not yet available) | |||||
December 14, 2007
|