Handle with care

October will go down as a tumultuous month for local government, but how deep are the repercussions of the Icelandic bank crisis and the global credit crunch going to be felt by councils?

In some respects this is a rhetorical question and hard to answer with any conviction.

Currently, prime minister Gordon Brown is furiously clocking up the air miles in a bid to find consensus among world leaders to find a way out of the slump.

Back home, his pledges of huge injections of public funds into major infrastructure projects to kick start the economy have prompted attacks from the opposition, but done him the world of good in the opinion polls.

This seemingly gung-ho approach seems far removed from the more parochial concerns of councils seeking to keep local economies invigorated.

Add to this, many chief executives believe their organisations will feel the pinch and consequently have to ‘trim the fat’.

But councils are going to have to handle this squeeze with great care in an effort to ameliorate the effects of the crunch wherever possible.

Many authorities are major employers and the rationalization of service provision resulting in the closure of satellite offices may, in turn, devastate a rural community. Major re-scaling of regeneration projects, on the other hand, may not only underline the sense of gloom for citizens, but also be a retrograde step that has repercussions far beyond any economic upturn.

It is understandable to feel shell shocked in the wake of recent events. Now, though, is the time for calm, rational thought in order for councils to plot the right course for the future.