Blackburn council leader quits college job to focus on borough

1:00pm Thursday 17th January 2013 in Blackburn Photograph of the Author By Bill Jacobs, Local government reporter

Kate Hollern Kate Hollern

BLACKBURN with Darwen council leader Kate Hollern has given up her day job at the town’s college to concentrate on the impact of Whitehall grant cuts on the borough.

Her decision emerged after she travelled to London to tell local government minister Brandon Lewis that last month’s settlement would lead to reductions in services for children and old people as well as town hall redundancies.

She and Blackburn MP Jack Straw said the figures on which the grant was based were flawed and asked for a rethink on the last day of the official consultation.

Coun Hollern, 57, who receives £22,700 a year as council leader, said: “I have worked for Blackburn college for 13 years on the work-based learning programme.

“As part of efficiency savings, they decided to make two jobs into one and I decided it would be a good time to take early retirement.

“I have got a lot on my plate with the savings we have to make and I need to concentrate on that.

“It is agonising to make another 20 per cent of cuts when we have already cut services to the bone.

“We are talking about cuts to adult social services, care for the elderly, children’s services and redundancies at the council.

“These are people’s lives we are talking about.

“I shall eventually be looking for another day job. I have to live.

“We told Mr Lewis there had been double counting. He said there had been some technical glitches.

“He promised to look again before the final figure are released next week, but we are not holding our breath.”

Mr Straw said: “We made the case for a reconsideration and said there would be difficult decisions to take if the grant figures were not changed.”

A spokesman for Mr Lewis said: “It was a useful and productive meeting where he listened carefully to their concerns.

“Every bit of the public sector needs to do its bit to help pay off budget deficit.

“This provisional settlement is fair and will reward councils ready to strive for their communities and gives them another year to get their house in order.”

Ian Clinton, principal of Blackburn College which also employs borough regeneration boss Dave Harling and Tory opposition leader Mike Lee, said: “Kate will be missed. She worked incredibly hard and never allowed being council leader to get in the way of doing her job.”

Comments (10)

1:07pm Thu 17 Jan 13

A Darener says...

They could save £22,700 instantly by getting rid of the council leader.
They could save £22,700 instantly by getting rid of the council leader. A Darener

1:09pm Thu 17 Jan 13

A Darener says...

“I shall eventually be looking for another day job. I have to live".
If you can't live on £22,700 then think of all the people who get a lot less.
“I shall eventually be looking for another day job. I have to live". If you can't live on £22,700 then think of all the people who get a lot less. A Darener

2:36pm Thu 17 Jan 13

2 for 5p says...

Quote:

“As part of efficiency savings, they decided to make two jobs into one and I decided it would be a good time to take early retirement.

In other words you thought it was ideak time to take your severance payment or redundancy, and bag yourself a few quid. Then make out you are doing this purely for the sake of the town.
Prof that you are not doing this for the town 2nd Quote:

“I shall eventually be looking for another day job.

Let your guard slip there Kate.
Quote: “As part of efficiency savings, they decided to make two jobs into one and I decided it would be a good time to take early retirement. In other words you thought it was ideak time to take your severance payment or redundancy, and bag yourself a few quid. Then make out you are doing this purely for the sake of the town. Prof that you are not doing this for the town 2nd Quote: “I shall eventually be looking for another day job. Let your guard slip there Kate. 2 for 5p

4:17pm Thu 17 Jan 13

mavrick says...

We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are,
We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are, mavrick

5:48pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Juan Hunose says...

mavrick wrote:
We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are,
Quite right. So easy to snipe. Councillors are an easy target. Try putting in the amount of time thy do in to trying to improve your town.
[quote][p][bold]mavrick[/bold] wrote: We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are,[/p][/quote]Quite right. So easy to snipe. Councillors are an easy target. Try putting in the amount of time thy do in to trying to improve your town. Juan Hunose

7:36pm Thu 17 Jan 13

jellybiff says...

Quite right. So easy to snipe. Councillors are an easy target. Try putting in the amount of time thy do in to trying to improve your town.hahahahah unreal
Quite right. So easy to snipe. Councillors are an easy target. Try putting in the amount of time thy do in to trying to improve your town.hahahahah unreal jellybiff

8:48pm Thu 17 Jan 13

district01 says...

Sorry Kate. You, Janet Anderson, Jack Straw, Tony Blair and all of the other ‘New Labour’ hangers on have been rumbled. Only the old traditionally and loyal to the bitter end ‘Old Labour’ supporters believe your lot any more. The ‘Labour’ party is no more thanks to Tony Blair!

Politics has become one untrustworthy gathering.

No difference between any of them.

Now they all have money, or will have in retirement despite what a mess is left behind!
Sorry Kate. You, Janet Anderson, Jack Straw, Tony Blair and all of the other ‘New Labour’ hangers on have been rumbled. Only the old traditionally and loyal to the bitter end ‘Old Labour’ supporters believe your lot any more. The ‘Labour’ party is no more thanks to Tony Blair! Politics has become one untrustworthy gathering. No difference between any of them. Now they all have money, or will have in retirement despite what a mess is left behind! district01

9:12pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Jack Herer says...

mavrick wrote:
We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are,
How can it be a council priority to pay full time union reps?

The unions have bags of cash. They can give away millions in party political donations to Labour. Yet they make councils pay their reps to do union work.

It's digusting when front line services are being cut. Front line services don't need to be cut. First to be cut should be paying union people who don't even do council work - they work for the union. How can paying them be more important than front line services?

How can donations to a political party ever be more important then front line services? They can't be. It's disgusting that front line cuts are even considered when the councils can afford to pay for someone to do union work. The unions can obviously afford to pay themselves if they can afford huge donations. Why should the struggling tax payer ever have to stump that bill?

Next to go should be fat cats in the public sector. Yes the fat cats need sorting in the private sector too, but it's pathetic that they are used as an excuse for hugely overpaid management in the public sector.

It's ludicrous to suggest it's OK for the average, hard working person to suffer and pay for fat cats in the public sector just because there are fat cats in the private sector too. Again, how can that ever be fair? It can't is the very obvious answer; two wrongs don't ever make a right.

Now when the council have made the blindingly obvious cuts such as stopping paying for non-council jobs, and seriously tackling the fat cats, then they can start moaning about Whitehall cuts. What it currently looks like is fat cats in the council wanting to keep the gravy train rolling at the expense of the poor hard working suckers in the private sector.

"Alleged" defecit crisis as well? What planet are you on? Seriously? Is the financial crisis just a Tory lie so they can squirrel the money away themselves? Why isn't Greece just spending it's way out of debt too then? After all it's only an alleged crisis.

Jesus, god help us if Labour get back in with their fairy tale vision of finances. The poor, poor public. What have they done to deserve such shoddy leaders?
[quote][p][bold]mavrick[/bold] wrote: We should be aiming our remarks at the Tory ministers who are making these decisions. If anybody thinks that being a council leader in this time of austerity is easy then stand for election or offer a long period of silence. They say the public sector has to do its part in paying off the deficit, not a mention of the greedy leeches in the private sector.It seems that the remuneration packages of the people who caused this mess are untouchable. Tories looking after themselves again. How do they know how much the deficit really is? I am very suspect of the alleged deficit crisis. who do we owe the money to? It is our money. It is high time we told this and any future government what we want, what our priorities are,[/p][/quote]How can it be a council priority to pay full time union reps? The unions have bags of cash. They can give away millions in party political donations to Labour. Yet they make councils pay their reps to do union work. It's digusting when front line services are being cut. Front line services don't need to be cut. First to be cut should be paying union people who don't even do council work - they work for the union. How can paying them be more important than front line services? How can donations to a political party ever be more important then front line services? They can't be. It's disgusting that front line cuts are even considered when the councils can afford to pay for someone to do union work. The unions can obviously afford to pay themselves if they can afford huge donations. Why should the struggling tax payer ever have to stump that bill? Next to go should be fat cats in the public sector. Yes the fat cats need sorting in the private sector too, but it's pathetic that they are used as an excuse for hugely overpaid management in the public sector. It's ludicrous to suggest it's OK for the average, hard working person to suffer and pay for fat cats in the public sector just because there are fat cats in the private sector too. Again, how can that ever be fair? It can't is the very obvious answer; two wrongs don't ever make a right. Now when the council have made the blindingly obvious cuts such as stopping paying for non-council jobs, and seriously tackling the fat cats, then they can start moaning about Whitehall cuts. What it currently looks like is fat cats in the council wanting to keep the gravy train rolling at the expense of the poor hard working suckers in the private sector. "Alleged" defecit crisis as well? What planet are you on? Seriously? Is the financial crisis just a Tory lie so they can squirrel the money away themselves? Why isn't Greece just spending it's way out of debt too then? After all it's only an alleged crisis. Jesus, god help us if Labour get back in with their fairy tale vision of finances. The poor, poor public. What have they done to deserve such shoddy leaders? Jack Herer

9:28pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Jack Herer says...

district01 wrote:
Sorry Kate. You, Janet Anderson, Jack Straw, Tony Blair and all of the other ‘New Labour’ hangers on have been rumbled. Only the old traditionally and loyal to the bitter end ‘Old Labour’ supporters believe your lot any more. The ‘Labour’ party is no more thanks to Tony Blair!

Politics has become one untrustworthy gathering.

No difference between any of them.

Now they all have money, or will have in retirement despite what a mess is left behind!
Very true unfortunately.

This country needed a strong, decent Labour party. What did we get instead? Clueless, self interested clowns in the form of Brown and Blair and their entourage.

Blair definitely takes the biscuit. What's he up to now? Travelling the world from his mansion by helicopter I think, paid for by Israel. You couldn't make up how bad for this country he was / is.

Shameful, shameful, shameful.

What happened to leaders with integrity? What happened to leaders with courage? Looking back on Blair; what happened to leaders who had a clue?
[quote][p][bold]district01[/bold] wrote: Sorry Kate. You, Janet Anderson, Jack Straw, Tony Blair and all of the other ‘New Labour’ hangers on have been rumbled. Only the old traditionally and loyal to the bitter end ‘Old Labour’ supporters believe your lot any more. The ‘Labour’ party is no more thanks to Tony Blair! Politics has become one untrustworthy gathering. No difference between any of them. Now they all have money, or will have in retirement despite what a mess is left behind![/p][/quote]Very true unfortunately. This country needed a strong, decent Labour party. What did we get instead? Clueless, self interested clowns in the form of Brown and Blair and their entourage. Blair definitely takes the biscuit. What's he up to now? Travelling the world from his mansion by helicopter I think, paid for by Israel. You couldn't make up how bad for this country he was / is. Shameful, shameful, shameful. What happened to leaders with integrity? What happened to leaders with courage? Looking back on Blair; what happened to leaders who had a clue? Jack Herer

9:32pm Thu 17 Jan 13

Deantwerpen says...

"Annual income £22,700, annual expenditure £21,699, result happiness. Annual income £22,700 , annual expenditure £22,701, result misery."

That's why I need my day job.

Stuff the proletariat!

Apologies to Wilkins Micawber.
"Annual income £22,700, annual expenditure £21,699, result happiness. Annual income £22,700 , annual expenditure £22,701, result misery." That's why I need my day job. Stuff the proletariat! Apologies to Wilkins Micawber. Deantwerpen

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