Council leader has ‘whirlwind’ first week as he sizes up job

The 65-year-old was as surprised as anyone to be suddenly catapulted into power and on the night of the elections could be heard in the corridors of power plaintively exclaiming about his age.

However a few days into the job he says he is “absolutely and totally up for it”.

The former trade union representative who worked as a tanker loader at BP at Saltend for 20 years has already been the subject of snipes about dropping his aitches and compared unfavourably with smooth-talking predecessor Carl Minns.

“Don’t you think it’s a bit snobbish?” he asks. “I think I talk alright. I can hold a conversation with the Prime Minister. I don’t look at Twitter or websites. I don’t read the drivel. I’m a people person. I will just be myself.”

Coun Brady has plenty on his plate, with Labour pledging to save many of the services which were due for the axe under the Lib Dem budget. But they have been left with little room for manoeuvre, with three-quarters of the budget already distributed and 1,000 staff having taken voluntary redundancy. Under Labour, 400 jobs have been saved.

Unions played a large part in Labour’s successful campaign, based largely on saving care homes and day centres, as well as other unique services like the Albemarle Music Centre from the axe.

Could last week’s annual meeting – which was interrupted by union reps’ slow clapping – be a sign of the influence they will have? Coun Brady insists it doesn’t. “I was totally embarrassed,” he said. “As far as I am concerned I know who I represent – the people of the city. The unions represent their members and they will have the right as any normal trade union to have representation. There will be no special privileges. At BP I brought in the secret ballot before Margaret Thatcher was elected leader – certainly I was classed as a Right-wing leader then.

“I’ve never been a Left-wing socialist. I think everything in moderation and all sides should compromise and I will be expecting common sense to prevail.”

Some of his first week was spent visiting council-run care homes and day centres. Rather than saving all three care homes and 13 day centres, he suggests Salingar House, which has only half a dozen residents, and two of the day centres may not survive. However he says no one will be evicted against their will.

“I want to go back to Salingar and talk to relatives because they have been offered other accommodation. I need to make sure in my mind that what happens will be the best for them and they are accepting that situation. If you ended up having an empty building there’s a logic behind (closing) it.”

He says the Albemarle Music Centre – which was looking at having to cut some of its repertoire – will be getting more money. Other pledges have yet to be set in stone.

There will be a reduction in the price of school meals for primary school pupils, but serving them for free is “a long way in the distance.”

Senior managers’ pay will be cut but when is not yet known. “I think chief executives have their own unions and over the years they have forced their own pay up. They do an important job but it doesn’t bear comparison with the Prime Minister. We are definitely going to take £3m off senior management pay as and when we get to grips with the present cuts.”

The finer details will emerge in the run up to June 16 when Labour’s emergency budget will be set. For now all is to play for.

Problem of enterprise zone

One of the knottier problems yet to be resolved is who joins who to form a local enterprise partnership. Currently the leadership is backing two horses, both the Humber-wide LEP, and the Hull, East Riding and Scarborough LEP. Why? Hull is desperate for a low tax Enterprise Zone round the docks, on the back of the Siemens development, and there’s only one Enterprise Zone on offer per LEP.