What's On at the Ffwrnes: Carry On Cutting

Carmarthenshire County Council's attempt to manage the news with its bizarre budget cuts seminar is set to become a PR nightmare as it descends into farce.

Plaid Cymru, which with 28 councillors is the largest political group on the council, recently offered to join the ruling Labour and Independent groups to form a rainbow coalition in order to deal with the looming crisis in council funding, but the prospect of having to surrender a chunk of their special responsibility allowances and perks and share power was clearly a step too far for Kevin Madge, Pam Palmer and the rest of the "dream team".We now face the prospect of watching them clinging on to their portfolios and wringing their hands as they tell us how lonely and difficult it is at the top.

Lonely they certainly will be at the seminar in Llanelli on Monday, because Plaid will now be sending along just a handful of observers to the event, and it has promised to challenge the unjust and unfair proposals being cobbled together in County Hall.

"We will hold those who make such decisions to account. We will give a voice to the vulnerable and support those who suffer job or service losses", Peter Hughes Griffiths has promised.

Attempts by the Ministry of Spin to get the media to participate in discussions about where to wield the axe, and so make them part of the process rather than reporting independently on it, have been met with incredulity by the more reputable media organisations, including the boys from the Beeb.
The council can look forward to coverage which pays at least as much attention to protests outside the theatre and the democratic deficit inside the venue as it does to the proposals themselves.

This statement does not apply to the Carmarthen Journal and Llanelli Star, of course, whose copy is ready and waiting in the council's press office.

Shall we cut it off, Meryl?