Budget: £10m for council tax cut, part-time Travelcards and affordable workspaces for start-ups

2014/15 costed proposals will slash over-the-top TfL perks and put cash into the pockets of Londoners

Money raised from scrapping the over generous TfL “nominee pass”, which allows free travel for flatmates and lodgers of staff, should be ploughed into helping council tax payers, commuters and start-up businesses, according to Gareth Bacon, GLA Conservatives budget spokesman.

The estimated £10m raised by cancelling the nominee pass scheme should be used to pay for the following tax-cutting and pro-business measures:

• £7m to further cut council tax. A 2.2% cut for 2014/15 (compared to the Mayor’s 1.3%), accelerating progress towards the Mayor’s 10% reduction target by 2016
• £1m to fund a feasibility study (including all technical assessments and financial modelling) into the introduction of part-time Travelcards and one-hour bus tickets
• £2m to pilot the conversion of 70 empty garages into affordable workshops and studios for start-ups and micro businesses

 
 
GLA Conservatives budget spokesman, Gareth Bacon:

“These costed proposals will put cash directly into the pockets of Londoners and can be paid for with the £10m raised by cutting over-the-top TfL perks. First, our proposed £7m cash injection into cutting the Mayor’s share of council tax will deliver a tax cut for millions of Londoners, while accelerating progress towards the Mayor’s target of a 10% reduction over this current term. Next, giving commuters the option of buying part-time tickets, such as a three-day Travelcard, as well as one-hour bus tickets, will make flexible and remote working more affordable. We can make this a reality by proposing £1m to conduct a feasibility study which would include all technical assessments and financial modelling, with the objective of introducing them within the next two years.

“We have recently identified over 3,000 garages lying empty across London. A further £2m should be used to help start-ups and micro businesses, by converting an initial 70 into affordable studios and workshops for rent, if they’re not suitable for housing. This money would pay for turning the garages into a decent affordable work space including electrical rewiring, heating, insulation and decent internet connection. This will go a long way towards helping small businesses such as a start-up cycle mechanic, a small architect’s firm or a growing printing business who would otherwise face high rents and tricky rental terms with landlords. I will do everything I can to make sure the Mayor includes these pro-business, tax cutting measures in his spending plans for 2014/15.”

 
 

Click here to download the
full amendment proposal

Or can be accessed or shared with glaconservatives.co.uk/b14

 
Gareth Bacon will propose these measures in today’s Greater London Authority budget meeting. For more on the reports featured in our proposals read:
· GLA Conservatives planning spokesman, Steve O’Connell, recently published policy proposal calling for empty garages to be turned into affordable business space for start-ups and microbusinesses. “From Lock Up to Start Up” can be accessed at: glaconservatives.co.uk/lusu
· Conservative London Assembly Member, Roger Evans recently published report calling for part time Travelcards for Londoners. “Home Works” can be accessed at: glaconservatives.co.uk/hw