IT'S GOOD TO TALK FOR LESS UNDER THE LIB DEMS

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Wed 1st Jul 2009

The ruling Liberal Democrats on Sheffield City Council have revealed that they saved local taxpayers £1,610,000 on publicity costs in 2008/09 compared to the previous financial year when Labour were in control at the Town Hall. Cllr Simon Clement-Jones, Liberal Democrat Cabinet member for Finance and Customer Focused Services, said: "I'm delighted that the Liberal Democrats have been able to make good on our commitments. As a result of insisting that costs are driven down, local taxpayers have saved a huge £1.6m compared to what Labour used to spend on publications."

In 2007/08 the Labour run Council spent over £4.5m on publications. But in just one year the Liberal Democrats have managed to reduce this to around £2.9m. Publication costs include advertising for recruitment, general publicity and funding the Council's press team.

This year the Lib Dems delivered Sheffield's lowest ever Council Tax increase. They are also looking to deliver even more savings by reducing the number of senior managers in the Town Hall, although this will take longer to come to fruition due to redundancy costs.

Simon added: "Unlike Labour we are committed to driving down costs so that local people get value for money. Some things we can do quickly, but others will take more time. However, the important thing is that we are determined to deliver good services whilst keeping Council Tax to an absolute minimum."