FENLAND: MP Moss criticises Government decision to water down spending openness laws

MALCOLM Moss MP has criticised the Government s decision to water down new laws which would tell people how much taxpayers money is spent in Fenland. For the first time in British politics, the Government will publish a regular breakdown on the amount of

MALCOLM Moss MP has criticised the Government's decision to water down new laws which would tell people how much taxpayers' money is spent in Fenland.

For the first time in British politics, the Government will publish a regular breakdown on the amount of public money spent in each community, and explain how much of that spending is controlled by local people and how much by Whitehall.

The new law, called the Sustainable Communities Act 2007, was introduced by the Conservatives and was passed by Parliament.

However, in a consultation paper issued by the Government, the plans for reports on local spending under the act have been watered down.

Only spending information by councils and NHS Primary Care Trusts will be published - and this is already in the public domain.

Mr Moss, MP for North East Cambridgeshire, said: "It is completely unacceptable that control freak Ministers should try to water down these ground-breaking new openness laws.

"Labour are obsessed with trying to control everything from Whitehall. It speaks volumes that they want to stop local people finding out which areas gets a raw deal from the Government.

"The Sustainable Communities Act can give local communities a far greater say on how their money is spent. In this way, we can tackle 'Ghost Town Britain' and the ongoing loss of local shops, services and facilities."

Research carried out by the Taxpayers' Alliance estimates that �64billion a year is now spent by unelected quangos - executive non-departmental public bodies - the equivalent to �2,550 for every household in Fenland.