Celebrities as Christmas items:
This game might look silly (it really is) but it can be quite fun: Please add some more below…
Some local government (well, one local government and some other government) quotes:
And whilst we’re on Churchill here is a couple of humerous exchanges between Lady Astor (the first female MP to take her seat) and Mr Churchill:
A cartoon depicting Local Government from Australia; seems familiar though right!
Is it this complicated the world over?
I know I'd donate
An idea for a new charity.
Over the winterval period (thanks Eric for sticking that phrase in my head) I’ve received quite a few e-mails from colleagues, suppliers, contacts and random organisations, many of which have followed a similar theme: “Happy Christmas, this year we didn’t send any cards but are sending you this e-mail instead, and with the money we saved on cards and postage we made a donation to save the cats/polar bears/forest/one toe sloths”.
Now, I don’t mind this; to be honest it makes my mantlepiece a little less cluttered and also saves on me filling the recycling bin with bits of old card. However, I do object to the donation bit.
What do I care about cats/polar bears/forests/one toe sloths?! Okay, forests are pretty useful what with the whole breating thing, but otherwise I can think of many different ways of spending that money.
Therefore I’m making a proposal. Let’s set up a ‘public sector relief fund’, akin to those set up for national disasters. Any Christmas card based donations can then be sent this way, contributing quickly to a sizeable pot of money which can then be used to help those public sector staff in need. Just think: for £2 you can provide Edward in Accounts with the leaving party he deserves, or Shaniqua in Youth Services with a pen to use when signing on.
Every little helps.
A picture of Eric Pickles and Grant Shapps actually cutting red tape:
Pure Genius!
A metaphor that has gone too far...
A reminder to follow our twitter @welovelocalgov and an amusing cartoon:
Twitter Etiquette is even harder for anonymous bloggers!
A simple message:
Our very special Winterval card for Eric Pickles
Some Local Government jokes
Q. Why won’t sharks attack Public Sector consultants?
A. Professional courtesy
There were two public realm service facilitators working for the city council; one would dig a hole, the other would follow behind him and fill it in. They worked furiously all day without rest, one guy digging a hole, the other guy filling it in again.
An onlooker was amazed at their hard work, but couldn’t understand what they were doing. So he asked the hole digger, “I appreciate the effort you’re putting into your work, but what’s the story? You dig a hole and your partner follows behind and fills it up again.
The hole digger wiped his brow and sighed, “Well, normally we’re a three-man team, but the bloke who plants the trees is sick today.”
Q. How many Eric Pickles does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A. None, they are too busy screwing over the public sector.
A proposed council tax-evaluation policy will mean reassessment of current house values which will mean they will charge us more if we live in a nice area. That ought to mean discounts for those of us who live in rough areas.
There is a huge council house in our street. The extended family is run by a grumpy old woman with a pack of irritable dogs. Her car isn’t taxed or
insured and doesn’t even have a number plate, but the police still do nothing. Her bad-tempered old man is notorious for racist comments. A shopkeeper blames him for ordering the murder of his son and his son’s girl-friend, but nothing has been proved.
All their kids have broken marriages except the youngest, who everyone thought was gay. Two grandsons are meant to be in the Army but are always out partying in nightclubs. They are out of control.
I hate living near Windsor Castle…
Q. What’s the difference between a rooster and consultants?
A. The rooster clucks defiant…
With mortgage rates being as they are, I recently decided to renovate my house rather than move, as it’ll be cheaper. However this makes a lot of mess, so I decided to hire a skip from the Council. I called them up and asked for one, but I don’t think they understood. They told me I can cartwheel around the estate for all they care, and that I don’t need their permission.
Two weeks later a self-risk assessment form for skipping and forward momentum activities dropped through my door though.
The first rule of WLLG; don't tell anyone who writes WLLG
It is coming to the end of the year and the WeLoveLocalGovernment team are planning to take a well earned break between now and the New Year (don’t worry though; we’ve planned some little surprises to keep you entertained throughout the festive period).
And as the end of the year is coming it seemed appropriate to take stock of the year that has been, both for us and for local government. So, in true top of the pops style here follows, in no particular order, our top ten reflections on the year:
1) It would be hard to look past the Comprehensive Spending Review as the single most important moment for local government this year. In our opinion the spending cuts were, and still are, a big opportunity for local government. However, in the short term they have led to rushed decisions and the redundancy of a lot of staff who in any other circumstances local government would be nuts to let go.
2) As a blog site nothing was more exciting than our debut writing on the Guardian website; although our post on radical Chief Executives could be politely described as somewhat controversial. Nonetheless, we thoroughly enjoyed writing the blog and took a certain pleasure in provoking a little bit of controversy; derived straight from the front line.
3) All of us found ourselves facing redundancy, for some we were facing it for the first time in our lives. I don’t think any of us would describe ourselves as particularly naive and we knew what was coming. However, the way it happened, the effect it had on previously reasonable colleagues and the trouble many Local Authorities had at making the whole thing stick was beyond our worst expectations or fears.
We Love Local Government 