Cllr Mark A Kirk

Yesterday I was invited to the BBC offices in Hull to talk about our campaign for a reduction in the Humber Bridge tolls. Unfortunately because of the earthquake during the early hours of yesterday we were moved from a slot on Peter Levy's sofa to an interview outside of the building! 

 A lot of work is going on with the campaign and I was pleased to tell the BBC of our efforts. Last night at Cabinet we updated members on the work that has gone on so far and set out the timetable of when the economic study will take place. Adverts have been placed in the press today asking for expressions of interest to carry out the research. And we hope to have the research completed by September - I make no apologies for the tight timescale, we must get on with the job and get the evidence we need to present to the Government.

It is important we are united on this issue and I welcome cross party support from all authorities in the Humber sub-region. Our MPs are continuing to fight our corner and I am determined to reach a satisfactory outcome. We will not give up the fight!

Yesterday I attended the Lincolnshire Tourism Conference 2008 in Woodhall Spa where a number of very interesting speakers gave their thoughts on how we should promote the area. 

Peter White, the BBC's Disability Affairs Coorespondent, gave a brilliant video speech as he couldn't make it in person. The event showed us how we should sell ourselves as an area and promote the part of the country that we live in. 

The conference also outlined how important the London Olympics will be in 2012 and how we have a real opportunity to put the area on the map. Billions of pounds will be invested in the UK and millions of people will visit and we have a great chance to get a share in that.

Last night I was very proud to deliver my first budget as Labour leader and the first since we regained control of the council last May. Residents were tired of the Tories and wanted a change and I hope during the next four years, and hopefully beyond, we can put a smile back on people's faces.

We agreed to increase council tax by 3.9 per cent. For 75 per cent of people in North Lincolnshire that is a rise of 67p a week or less. We feel the investments we will be making in the region will make such a small rise look like excellent value for money.  Last night I was pleased to outline a number of schemes we have been asked to provide by the electorate. It proves we are a listening council and for those who were not in attendance here are a few details.

An extra £300,000 available to highways for road repairs ensuring the region's worst roads are repaired
£3-million for flood defence work to ensure that residents are better protected in case of freak weather
• Massive investment to provide recycling nodes in all schools and colleges across North Lincolnshire. Barton schools will receive them first with other schools and colleges to follow
• £2-million investment to amalgamate Oakfield Primary School
• £3-million investment for the new Lakeside School with money also put in by the developers
• £1-million investment in school kitchens bringing healthier meals to the region's schools
• Record investment in elderly care with more money available to care for those who need it most
• £100,000 investment in street scene to get two extra crews on the roads to clean region's streets

There is also provision to ensure we can deliver a top quality entertainment venue on the site of the Baths Hall. We can provide a 1,200 seater or 2,000 standing capacity venue, which will cater for music, entertainment, conferences and workshops, and still deliver a council tax lower than the Conservative average over their four years in administration.  We want to deliver services at value for money and we think this budget allows us to do that.  We are not about making cuts - the Tories proposed £2.6-million of 'efficiency savings' which I can only assume meant redundancies and job losses - we are about investing in people and in this area.

I would love to hear from taxpayers and find out what they think about our budget. You can leave me a comment on here or email me at mark.kirk@northlincs.gov.uk

 Whenever I speak to residents about what they want to see more of they tell me they want safer, cleaner streets.  They want walls free of graffiti and they want streets free of litter. I feel North Lincolnshire Council is already very good at going out and keeping the region's streets clean. 

 As I was out and about in Crosby yesterday I saw the council's cleaning team doing a fantastic job in sweeping the streets.

Because people have told us this is what they want we have listened. In last night's budget I announced the Labour council will be investing an extra £100,000 in street scene - clearing litter, cleaning dog mess and repairing vandalism. This will put two extra crews on North Lincolnshire's streets and also assist in some Saturday working.

With more than 70 per cent of North Lincolnshire's residents paying less than 67p extra on their council tax every week I believe extra services such as street cleaning will offer brilliant value for money for local people.

While the focus this week has rightly been on the budget, I have also had some very good news as I am now a grandad for the second time!

My son Les and his partner have welcomed little Casey Kirk into the world. She was born on Monday afternoon and weighed 6lbs 12oz.

 She is my second grandchild, following Brad who is now six years old.

I was very glad to see so many positive comments on the Telegraph's website yesterday backing our plans to build a new entertainment venue for North Lincolnshire. There is overwhelming evidence to suggest we are doing the right thing and despite a sensationalised headline in the newspaper the vast majority of people believe the region needs a new venue.

In particular one comment on the website really made me smile and I believe captures the real reason why we need to have a venue the town can be proud of.

I was disappointed to read in today's Scunthorpe Telegraph a story stating how the council will not tell local people how the new entertainment venue will be funded.  The story has originated from a council press release which informs people of the options available for a new Baths Hall and the decisions which councillors have to make at next Wednesday's budget meeting.  However, no-one from the Telegraph contacted myself or anyone at the Labour group to ask how it will be funded. To wake up and see today's headline was therefore very surprising!  How can we not be telling people how it will be funded if we are not asked the question?

I would therefore like to set the record straight and confirm the new entertainment venue for North Lincolnshire will not have a major impact on local taxpayers.  The venue will be delivered at a council tax increase less than the four-year Conservative group average of 4.6 per cent.  Next week the council will set the budget for the next three years and agree on detailed plans regarding the Baths Hall. The Labour group made it a manifesto commitment to provide an iconic new venue to provide entertainment for the area and this was backed up by a recent survey that showed 84.7 per cent of people would visit the new venue.

We could quite easily have followed the Tories and shut the Baths down and sold the land for private housing.  Alternatively we could quite easily have just given the Baths Hall a lick of paint and opened up a poor, run-down facility.  But that is not what the people of North Lincolnshire want - they have told us, both on the doorstep and in official consultation, that they want a new venue to be proud of.  They want something to put the region back on the map.

People should not be scared into thinking the cost of the Baths Hall will fall solely on the taxpayer. It would not be prudent of us to not consult with the private sector and a lot of work has gone on behind-the-scenes. We are also looking into external funding from the likes of Yorkshire Forward and the Arts Council as part of the Urban Renaissance project. And we have also built in council funds - yet council tax rises will still be less than the four-year Tory average.

Detailed costs have been drawn up and to provide a high-quality new entertainment venue will cost between £9-million and £15-million. This will provide a multi-functional venue with bars and kitchens, a café, conference rooms and space for as many as 2,000 standing people to enjoy live music and entertainment. To put the planned cost of the venue into context, here are the building costs of a number of other entertainment facilities in the Yorkshire and Humber region:

• Doncaster Dome - £26-million

• The Deep, Hull - £53-million

• X-Scape, Castleford - £56-million

• Magna, Rotherham - £45.6-million

• New Grimsby Town football stadium - £14-million

The council is working with a team of top independent architects to ensure the cost of the new facility is good value for money. The budget papers, available to members of the public, state the council is consulting with a variety of partners and this could have a significant impact (possibly a reduction) on the overall cost of the venue. Unfortunately this was not published in the article.

The ethos behind the new Baths Hall can be summed up by a quote left by one resident who filled in the recent online survey. It said: ‘We don't want more cover bands, we want live, popular acts that attract audiences from around. We need to be national not local and we need to offer choice and variety with pleasant and inviting surrounds'.

This is what the people of North Lincolnshire are telling us - and we are listening to them.

On Saturday a number of Labour delegates and myself attended the regional Labour group awards at the Cedar Court Hotel in Bradford. After attending during the day to listen to a number of speakers, such as MPs Rosie Winterton and Caroline Flint, it came down to the highly anticipated awards.

And in a fantastic achievement for the local party we were given a special award for becoming the only Labour group in the country during last May's elections to win control of a council from the Conservative group. We were awarded the ‘best campaigning in opposition' award by Ed Balls MP. The former Labour group leader Nic Dakin and I collected the award on behalf of the party.

Around 10 members of the party attended the awards ceremony at their own expense. It was a very enjoyable night!