FairShare Campaign
Fighting for a Better Deal
Aberdeenshire Council spends 9.7% less on services than most other councils and has 2.6% more staff than the Scottish average.
This affects services to our public and is due to the low level of government grant we get – 12.7% below the average for Scotland.
The Council is fighting for a better deal and its "FairShare" Campaign, supported by all local MPs and MSPs, is aimed at persuading the Scottish Executive to give us a better deal.
Leaflet
We were successful in getting this on the agenda of the recent enquiry into Local Government Finance and securing a recommendation from them that the grant distribution arrangements need to be looked at.
The previous Scottish Government agreed to a review of the grant arrangements, signalling a major success for our campaign.
This review concluded in Autumn 2009 and while the outcomes are accepted by Aberdeenshire Council they do little to rectify the unfairness of the grant distribution methodology. We need to make sure that the Scottish Government will address this issue.
We considered putting an explanatory leaflet with every council tax bill, but were advised that it would be illegal to incur the costs involved of around £1,000.
You may, however, print out the leaflet yourself to read why we think you, our residents, are hard done by, and to find out how you can help.
You may copy and use all or any part of the document.
Briefing Paper
The following briefing paper contains the full facts of our position and has been used by several local bodies to give support to our campaign for a "FairShare" for the people of Aberdeenshire.
Write to your MSP or MP
You can also lend your support to our campaign by writing to your local MSP or local MP.