'Council newspapers: a disaster for democracy'

Mark Wallace is campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, the independent campaign for lower taxes and better government. A long-standing campaigner for individual freedom and civil liberties who has written for a variety of newspapers, magazines and blogs, he has been at the TPA since 2007. Find out more about the TaxPayers' Alliance and information on how to join at this link.

Whenever they come in for criticism, be it for failing services or excessively high tax bills, councils are always quick to list off how many different jobs they do. Bin collection, child protection, library provision - all the familiar roles we associate with town halls and many more. They never seem to mention one of their most controversial and more recent enterprises, though - newspaper publishing.

An increasing number of councils now produce their own freesheets, distributed at taxpayers' expense to every home in the local area. As a result, the already under-pressure local newspaper business - freesheet and paid for alike - is suffering. With the recession making times tough for just about every business, having a taxpayer-funded, free-of-charge competitor appear on your doorstep is the death knell for a growing number of local papers.

How did this come about? Councils of course have to publicise their services - particularly amongst hard-to-reach vulnerable groups such as the isolated elderly. From that basis, though, there has been a huge degree of mission creep.

What started off as simple fliers distributed when necessary to notify people about new services or bin timetable changes has been transformed into a flurry of glossy, full-colour publications that are stuffed full of 'news' about how great councillors and their senior officers are, with only occasional boxes devoted to actual services.

Part of this is down to human nature, and part down to cynical politics. It is human nature to empire-build. An officer responsible for designing and printing simple black and white fliers listing when people's bins are going to be collected will naturally hanker after something more prestigious, more impressive and better paid. It was only a matter of time before bold officers proposed a radical upgrade from flier to fully-fledged council newspaper.

That empire-building instinct should have been tempered by councillors who - mindful of the cost to taxpayers - ought to have turned down the proposal. However, offered a taxpayer-funded platform to promote themselves and their work, many politicians became tempted. If you have a flick through your council's publication next time it comes through the door, the odds are that you'll find it chock full of glowing praise for the council's work, garish pictures of the grinning councillors who are claiming credit for that work and more often than not a letter from the leader or Mayor about how wonderful their own administration is. Small wonder that so many councillors are keen to ensure that their residents get as much of this stuff as possible.

The problems with this state of affairs are clear.

For a start, the cost is massive. In the middle of a recession, after a decade in which council tax has more than doubled, councils should be avoiding any unnecessary cost. TaxPayers' Alliance research using the Freedom of Information Act has revealed that the average council now spends £1 million a year on publicity alone - of which a sizable amount is newspapers and magazines. These ego-trips have become utterly unaffordable.

Then there is the impact on the independent press. These taxpayer-subsidised publications are undermining the financial viability of real, independent local media outlets. Councils spending taxpayers' money like water can buy materials and distribution networks that struggling local papers simply cannot afford to compete with. As a result, independent papers are folding in growing numbers - decent businesses driven out by thoughtless council activities.

That may not seem like a bad thing to councillors and council officers who resent the scrutiny that good local journalists focus upon them, but for the wider public and the democratic process it's a disaster. The democratic implications are worth considering. This isn't just an unnecessary bill for taxpayers, and a blow to independent papers, it's a clear example of political propaganda.

The public are overwhelmingly opposed to enforced taxpayer subsidy of political parties, but these magazines and newspapers are examples of taxpayer funded politics by stealth. It is anti-democratic for incumbent council administrations to use taxpayers' money to propagandise the public about how great they are.

If they were doing a good job, then they could be sure that their local residents would realise it and their local independent media outlets would recognise it. But it's far safer - and the spin is far easier to push - to simply run your own, heavily-biased media outlet.

Local politicians need to be brave and do the right thing. In the current climate, voters want to see councils tightening their belts to save money and - above all else - they want to see politicians sacrificing a bit of self-interest for the benefit of the people.

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