by John Harris on (#3TKF0)
Cuts and closures underline the flaws of a system dominated by Westminster’s power. From health to schools to housing, we need an urgent rethink‘We cannot survive as we are beyond this next financial year. There is no money. I am not crying wolf. I never cry wolf.†So says the Conservative leader of Torbay council, in Devon: a local authority that delivers the full range of services but can no longer function at even the most basic level.After years of bone-crunching austerity, by 2020 it will be faced with another £12m of cuts – so the most obvious option is to downgrade itself to a district council, hand over its most essential work to the bigger Devon county council, and hope for the best. Whether this will improve anything is an interesting question: since 2010, in real terms, Devon’s funding from government has been cut by 76%.Related: How can we protect our libraries from closure when the council ignores us?Related: Council cuts are putting the vulnerable at risk, Tory peer says Continue reading...