The proposal to establish new town councils by BCP Council is a costly mistake that must be rejected when it comes before the full council on October 14th.
The Financial Burden
These town councils will hit residents with higher council tax bills by slapping a precept on top of existing charges—potentially hundreds of pounds annually per household. This money funds duplicate administrative structures, salaries, and expenses for services that BCP Council already provides. From maintaining public spaces to organising community events, these are functions our unitary authority is equipped to handle without creating an entirely new layer of bureaucracy.
Hard-pressed residents struggling through a cost-of-living crisis simply cannot afford this waste. While families are making difficult choices about heating and groceries, BCP Council wants to burden them with additional taxes to fund positions that shouldn’t exist in the first place.
Victorian Solutions to Modern Problems
Beyond the financial burden, these councils are Victorian relics that create red tape instead of efficiency. They emerged in an era of horse-drawn carriages and telegrams—when communication between communities and the central government was genuinely difficult. Today’s world is fundamentally different.
Modern communication technology and existing local authority structures have made town councils obsolete. Email, social media, digital consultations, and direct online engagement with BCP Council mean residents have unprecedented access to decision-makers. Adding an unnecessary bureaucratic layer between residents and the decisions that affect their lives doesn’t improve democracy—it suffocates it under paperwork and procedure.
The Corruption Crisis
This bloated, outdated system also creates serious corruption risks that cannot be ignored. UK local councils lose an estimated £7 billion annually to fraud and mismanagement—a staggering figure that represents real money taken from essential public services.
The situation worsened dramatically in 2015 when the Audit Commission was abolished. Since then, town and parish councils operate with minimal oversight, investigating complaints against themselves with no independent scrutiny. This isn’t accountability—it’s the fox guarding the henhouse.
The promised “armchair auditors”—ordinary citizens monitoring council spending through transparency data—never materialised. Most residents lack the time, expertise, or access to effectively audit complex financial arrangements. Without the Audit Commission’s professional oversight, this vacuum breeds misconduct and poor financial management.
Political Ladder-Climbing
Too often, these councils also serve as political stepping stones for ambitious councillors more interested in Westminster careers than genuine community service. Many MPs begin their political journeys as local councillors, using taxpayer-funded positions to build networks and demonstrate party loyalty before progressing to higher office.
This creates a political class focused on personal advancement rather than residents’ needs. When councillors view their role primarily as a career stepping stone, community interests take a back seat to networking, party politics, and CV-building.
A Better Way Forward
BCP Council already provides the services residents need. Rather than creating expensive new structures, we should be strengthening existing democratic processes, improving digital engagement, and ensuring our unitary authority is responsive and accountable.
The October 14th vote is about more than town councils—it’s about whether BCP residents will tolerate being asked to pay more for less, whether we’ll accept Victorian governance structures in a digital age, and whether we’ll allow another layer of potential corruption and political careerism to be inserted between residents and the services we need.
BCP residents need to take back control from this expensive, outdated system. Contact your councillor before October 14th and tell them: vote no on the town councils.
