UNISON calls for urgent action to boost council street cleansing services

News that many areas in Edinburgh are not meeting cleanliness targets will come as no surprise to many, not least the workers who strive to provide - and incidentially take pride in - this front line service despite the problems they face. John Stevenson on STV website http://local.stv.tv/edinburgh/magazine/106187-unison-calls-for-urgent-action-to-boost-council-street-cleansing-services/

So what’s the answer? We have to start by acknowledging that nothing is easy when councils are being hit by a failed government policy of austerity bringing unprecedented and unnecessary funding cuts. Cuts that don’t just affect our services but affect the whole local economy. Cuts that have succeeded only in making things worse by bringing the double-dip recession UNISON had warned about since day one.

On top of that, for two years the council's efforts were diverted into a wasteful and costly privatisation exercise instead of concentrating on what really mattered - delivering the service. Millions spent on consultants would have been far better spent on front line services.