Campaigners fight Welsh transfer plans
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Protesters have hit the streets of the Welsh town of Port Talbot to fight plans for three ‘super’ residential care homes and stock transfer.
A strong Defend Council Housing campaign has been threatening to derail Neath Port Talbot council’s plans to transfer its 9,300 homes to a housing association.
It has also sparked anger over its proposals to close seven existing council care homes and one respite home to built three replacement centres.
Neath Port Talbot DCH campaigner Huw Pudner said: ‘Stock transfer is a form of privatisation and this council has a privatisation mania.’
He claimed he has seen a council document which says it is considering giving the management of the new residential care homes to the organisation which takes on its stock. The council denied this saying it had ‘no association with the potential development of NPT Homes’.
Chief executive of Neath Port Talbot council Steve Phillips said: ‘Independent surveys have shown that around £152 million is needed to bring homes up to the Welsh housing quality standard in six years.
‘Without transfer, the council expects it would have to make savings of around £2.3 million in the first six years after the ballot in order to balance the housing revenue budget.’
The council began a consultation on its plans for residential care for older people in January.
Mr Phillips said: ‘The new homes would have the potential to offer superior amenities such as bigger bedrooms, en-suite facilities for all residents and double rooms so that couples could stay together.’
The ballot on stock transfer ends on 16 March and the consultation on the care homes runs until 30 April.
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David | 08/03/2010 7:56 pm
The NPT Council has also refused to provide the Defend Council Housing Camapaigners with a list of its council homes addresses.
The list was requested and paid for in August of last year and it took the council 5 months to delay and prevaricate before finally refusing to provide the information required .
The DCH have appealed the decision but lo and behold the appeal is likely to be decided in the last day or two of the month long ballot.
There is a democratic deficit in Neath and Port Talbot!
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