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Business chiefs have called on councils to share more back office functions and bite the public private partnership (PPP) bullet. The CBI published a five-point plan for the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007 (CSR07) this week, which called for more competition, commissioning of services and involvement from the private sector. The CBI's director of public services policy, Neil Bentley, said: ‘Why should every local authority have its own payroll system, when it could be shared? This has got to be tackled. ‘We need to see leadership from local authority chief executives to see this agenda through. ‘One chief executive told me it was his priority to protect jobs, and that is an attitude we cannot afford.' The five-point plan also calls for the Government to save money through the sharing and relocation of back office functions and an overhaul of public sector pay and pensions. According to the CBI, public spending can grow by a rate of 1.6% in real teams without jeopardising fiscal stability. CBI deputy director-general, John Cridland, also reiterated their calls for local businesses to vote on any plans for supplementary business rate. ‘We are not trying to undermine the supplementary business rate,' he said. ‘There is a place for it. ‘If a local authority believes it has a plan for economic development which businesses should support, then it has nothing to fear from asking for a vote.' The CBI's chief economic adviser, Ian McCafferty, added: ‘Balancing public expenditure with a competitive tax burden is a delicate act for government and the current state of the national finances have left ministers with little room for manoeuvre.'

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BUSINESS

CBI wants councils to 'bite PPP bullet'

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