Cameron attack on 'wasteful' Labour (From Romsey Advertiser)

Cameron attack on 'wasteful' Labour

7:05am Monday 16th April 2012 in National News © Press Association 2013

David Cameron will attempt to shake off a torrid period for his government by focusing his fire on Labour as he launches the Tories' campaign for local elections in England next month.

The Prime Minister has endured a bruising battle with critics over controversial proposals, many in last month's budget, and his handling of difficulties such as the planned fuel tanker strike.

On Sunday, former shadow cabinet minister David Davis blamed "straightforward unforced errors" for some of the problems facing the Government - as well as a more hostile press and coalition politics.

Voters go to the ballot box across most of the UK on May 3 in a key test of public opinion two years after the general election that led to the Tory/Lib Dem coalition.

Speaking to party activists in Derbyshire, Mr Cameron is expected to hail Tory-run town halls as the "best-value councils in the country" with the lowest average council tax.

In contrast, he will declare: "Labour councils remain trapped in their old wasteful ways. Sunderland spent £113,000 on lobbyists, Lambeth spent almost £30,000 on a sculpture called Foxes and Cherries and Camden spent almost £200,000 on seven trade union activists.

"We are shining a spotlight on that waste. We've changed the rules so that councils have to reveal everything they spend above £500 and hold a vote on huge salaries for top staff.

"We've also given councils new freedoms to co-operate, saving a fortune in back office costs, to spend money from the business rate locally, and we've scrapped a ton of red tape that saw Whitehall order councils how to spend their money."

In a jibe at Labour's candidate for the London mayoral election, Ken Livingstone, he will add: "We used to say, 'Labour wastes your money and puts up your taxes'.

"With their candidate for London mayor we can say, 'Labour wastes your money and they won't even pay their taxes'."