The Lib Dem group had successfully brought a motion to Council previously, pushing the Council to be more transparent about local spending when making decisions, but the then Labour administration confirmed that their intention was simply to publish a more general “social impact assessment”.
Oldham Lib Dem group leader Sam Al-Hamdani said: “We have been fighting to increase the proportion of council spending that goes to Oldham firms for years. That’s why we had brought forward our original motion.
“We now have the opportunity to make this happen. Officers will provide a report on the effectiveness – or lack – of the current approach to spending. We’re pushing for every measure we can to prioritise local spending – because that means the Council is boosting our local economy in every way that it can.”
The approach to local spending, how visible it is when spending decisions are made, and what the Council can do to ensure that any companies outside the area increase their local involvement will now all be presented to the Governance scrutiny committee, with a view to any new measures being implemented as soon as possible.
Councillor Mark Kenyon added: “We are building for the future. Oldham’s people need to know that decisions are being taken in the best interests, and that whoever is running the Council, local priorities are their priorities. That’s why we’re taking the opportunity to build better decision making into the whole system.”
