I read with some interest the article, headlined 'Bid to beat town traffic problems' (Cornish Times, 21.08.09) about a dedicated PCSO for Looe and wondered if I was alone in thinking that something is not quite right.

In my council tax demand for this year, the summary of planned expenditure for Looe Town Council said the council had made an allocation in the administration budget to employ a full-time PCSO.  

As a consequence, this budget saw a rise of £39,400 over that for last year. The article puts the cost at £25,000, so why the higher amount in the council tax demand?

If the figure is correct, it suggests that some £14,400 is to meet pay increases for one full-time and six part-time (seasonal) staff – not bad if you can get it!

Perhaps more importantly, Looe Town Council must surely have discussed this proposal prior to the decision to levy this charge and yet here we are halfway through the year and it is still being discussed! 

I am sure the cost per household may not be very high but that is not the issue – it seems we are being charged for a non-existent service and in these harsh economic times it behoves Looe Town Council to be far more professional in managing such issues.

None of this would matter much if the swingeing increases to meet Devon & Cornwall Constabulary costs over the years had actually resulted in more PCs on the beat but that is unlikely and it seems priorities are more focused on a new multi-million pound headquarters that does not even have cells, resulting in wasted police time and transport costs!  

Can I urge all taxpayers to attend the consultation day on the traffic problems in Looe on September 25 – the first questions they might ask are: Where is the PCSO I am paying for?

What are you doing with the money?

Can I have a refund or carry forward the overpayment and reduce my bill next year?

Yours in hope rather than expectation!

 

Name & address

supplied