Tag: Kilian Bourke

Cambridgeshire council tax rise agreed but problems lie ahead

08:08 Wednesday 18th February 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: Council tax in Cambridgeshire is set to rise by 1.99%. The increase comes as the County Council faces £150 million of cuts over the next five years. The rise in council tax was agreed yesterday by the Council after being approved by the committee which sets the budget, but UKIP councillors voted against the rise, and Labour councillors abstained. Joining me now to talk more about this are three county councillors, Paul Bullen for UKIP, Paul Sales for Labour and we’re going to start with Kilian Bourke for the Liberal Democrat party. So Kilian, this increase in council tax, it will put more pressure on people’s pockets. How do you justify it?
KILIAN BOURKE: Well it’s on an average Band D property, and that’s going to be an increase of 43p per week. And the reality is that if council tax had been frozen, there would have had to be further cuts to bus services, to children’s centres, to social care. That would be a terrible decision in my opinion. And the Council did a survey, and the online survey showed that 78% of people would be prepared to have some level of increase, and 54% of people supported an increase of 1.99% or above. So it’s justified.
DOTTY MCLEOD: OK. Which department are you most worried about for this budget? Where is going to really feel the pressure of these cuts?
KILIAN BOURKE: It’s very simple. It’s social care. The sustainability of public services and the NHS depends on the Council’s children and adult social care services being able on an increasingly tight budget to provide those services. And also actually the NHS is providing an integrated older people’s service, and that social care service and the NHS’s new over-65 service, these two things have got to work, because if they don’t, we’re going to have real problems in the years to come.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Now this council tax rise wasn’t passed unanimously. The UKIP group voted against it. Paul Bullen is from that party. Why did you vote against it Paul? Continue reading “Cambridgeshire council tax rise agreed but problems lie ahead”

New Leader For LibDems On Cambs County Council

07:23 Monday 20th May 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: The LibDems in Cambridgeshire have changed their leader, just days before a big meeting that will decide who will lead the County Council. Former Leader Kilian Bourke has been ousted and replaced by the newly elected councillor for Waterbeach Maurice Leeke. Cllr Leake no stranger to Shire Hall, he’s led the Liberal Democrats before. I’m pleased to say Maurice is with us now. Morning.
MAURICE LEEKE: Morning.
PAUL STAINTON: So the new man, a new broom. What’s gone on? Have you all fallen out?
MAURICE LEEKE: No. No. Quite the reverse. Kilian has done an excellent job for us over the last couple of years, and particularly over the last couple of weeks, with the discussions that have been going on since the changes in the County Council elections.
KILIAN BOURKE: So why get rid of him now then, if he’s doing such an excellent job? Continue reading “New Leader For LibDems On Cambs County Council”

Martin Curtis Conservative Leader Cambs County Council

17:07 Friday 10th May 2013
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[C]HRIS MANN: So the man most likely to be Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council, we now know, is Cllr Martin Curtis of North Whittlesea. This afternoon he was elected to lead the Conservatives, the largest group on the Council, in place of Nick Clarke who lost his seat at last week’s elections. Martin Curtis joins me in the studio. Hello.
MARTIN CURTIS: Good afternoon Chris.
CHRIS MANN: Congratulations.
MARTIN CURTIS: Thank you very much.
CHRIS MANN: Of course you lost out to Nick Clarke before, so finally you’ve reached the top in the County.
MARTIN CURTIS: Absolutely. But I reached the top having learned a huge amount over the last two years from Nick as well.
CHRIS MANN: What’s going to change?
MARTIN CURTIS: Well I think a lot has got to change. We know that even though we’re by far and away the largest group on the County Council, we know we’re in a minority. We can only form a minority administration. And so we know that things have got to change. And it is a different style of leadership that we need, and a more collaborative one. We know that.
CHRIS MANN: Well we’ll talk some more about that in just a moment or two, but reaction to your election has come first from the most senior politician in the County, that’s the South Cambridgeshire MP and Leader of the House of Commons, Andrew Lansley. This is what he told me. Continue reading “Martin Curtis Conservative Leader Cambs County Council”

Old Hands Welcome New Faces To Cambridgeshire County Council

17:20 Tuesday 7th May 2013
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CHRIS MANN: The political fallout following the County Council elections continued today. The results left no party with an overall majority. The Conservatives are the biggest party with 32 of the 69 seats. The Liberal Democrats are second on 14. UKIP third on 12. Labour have 7, and there are 4 Independents. A number of questions remain, the foremost of which is, after the loss of Nick Clarke’s seat, who is going to lead the Conservatives, and therefore most likely lead the County Council. It’s looking like it will be the Acting Leader, Mac McGuire versus Whittlesea’s Martin Curtis in that contest, which is at two o’clock on Friday. And then the question remains of whether an official alliance of parties will be formed, or is needed, to run the Council. That’s certainly been on the mind of Peter Reeve, the UKIP councillor for Ramsey, who explained earlier on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire that he would like to see a coalition of the minority parties. (TAPE)
PETER REEVE: It would be very difficult in terms of the numbers, but technically if I could get, and I am being very proactive on this, if I could get Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Independents to all agree that we should have a coalition group, there is no need to have the Conservatives in power. .. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: .. The idea that UKIP could form a coalition with Labour was given short shrift by Paul Sales, Leader of the Labour Group. (TAPE)
PAUL SALES: You cannot be serious. The Labour Party in coalition with UKIP and the Liberals? Peter is a very enthusiastic guy. He fails completely to understand the way the Council works. The most likely outcome is going to be that the Tories will form a minority administration. I’ve been a member of a minority administration, and that would be sufficient for most things. But any sort of a formal coalition is completely impossible. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: And Conservative Mac McGuire, the Interim Leader of of the County Council, was equally dismissive. (TAPE)
MAC MCGUIRE: I mean gosh, that’s the best laugh since the last time I watched You’ve Been Framed on television. Paul’s absolutely right. What an unholy alliance that would make. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: An unholy alliance. Well, we’ll hear more from Peter Reeve in just a moment or two, the Leader of UKIP, but Kilian Bourke is Leader of the second largest party, the Liberal Democrats, and he joins me live now. Kilian, hello.
KILIAN BOURKE: Hello.
CHRIS MANN: Would you form an alliance with UKIP? Continue reading “Old Hands Welcome New Faces To Cambridgeshire County Council”

A Clear Vision – LibDem Manifesto For Cambridgeshire

08:20 Wednesday 3rd April 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[R]ONNIE BARBOUR: The Liberal Democrats in Cambridgeshire have released their manifesto as we head towards local elections. They’re promising to stop cuts to bus services, contribute to the cost of a rail link to Wisbech, improve pavements and street lighting, plus look after the young and the elderly. So how are they going to pay for it? Kilian Bourke is Leader of the LibDems opposition on the County Council. Kilian good morning to you.
KILIAN BOURKE: Morning Ronnie.
RONNIE BARBOUR: There’s a lot of things you’re going to do there, and of course manifestos are famously, you know, people like to put their dream sequence together, but how will you pay for those if you get in? Continue reading “A Clear Vision – LibDem Manifesto For Cambridgeshire”

Kilian Bourke’s Response To The Cambridgeshire County Budget – Election Year 2013

17:18 Tuesday 22nd January 2013
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[C]HRIS MANN: A rise in council tax, a loss of 99 jobs, and the opening of a council-run care home – these are just some of the things included in Cambridgeshire County Council’s budget proposals. £32 million worth of savings need to be made, and will be discussed at a Cabinet meeting next week. The Leader of Cambridgeshire County Council is Nick Clarke for the Conservative Party. He explains why the authority may build its own care home. (TAPE)
NICK CLARKE: The reality is that the private nursing homes can get more money for private individuals than they can from us. And we look after the most vulnerable. So we’re hoping to build a care home that will provide some additional capacity, which means that we can control our costs, which will then reinvested in .. in .. for .. for elderly people. (LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: That’s Nick Clarke, Leader of the County Council, talking on this programme at this time last night. Well Kilian Bourke is the Leader of the Liberal Democrats in Cambridgeshire, the official opposition. He joins me this evening. Kilian, hello to you.
KILIAN BOURKE: Evening Chris.
CHRIS MANN: Your reaction to the proposals in the budget made by the Conservatives? Continue reading “Kilian Bourke’s Response To The Cambridgeshire County Budget – Election Year 2013”

Kilian Bourke on Coalition Politics, Local Democracy and His Alternative Budget for Cambridgeshire County Council

17:20 Monday 20th February 2012
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CHRIS MANN: The County Council tomorrow votes on the budget for next year, including a 2.95% rise in council tax. When they announced their proposals, the Leader of the ruling Conservatives, Council Leader Nick Clarke gave us an extended interview on this programme. Now, on the eve of the crucial vote, it’s the turn of the Leader of the Opposition, Liberal Democrat councillor Kilian Bourke. Continue reading “Kilian Bourke on Coalition Politics, Local Democracy and His Alternative Budget for Cambridgeshire County Council”