Capita may be on the skids in the same direction as Carillion.

Its shares have just taken a 40 per cent knock. and so, Bromley Council may be having a bad day.

Despite having reserves of £130 million, in order to reduce its workforce from 4,000 to 300, it has outsourced many of its services to Capita. Staff expertise has been dumped.

No longer can you phone or visit Bromley Civic Centre in order to sort out a problem; you may have to be content with going online to one of Capita’s far-flung satellite offices.

This will save the Council some money in the short-term, although it is less convenient for local people and may cost a whole lot more money in the long term.

So why is Bromley, along with lots of other councils, both Tory and Labour, bent on this out-sourcing lunacy?

The austerity programmes of successive governments have left councils skint. Is there an alternative to kowtowing in servile obedience to central government?

Yes: stand up to Westminster.  There are lots of local councils and only one central government. Show some courage; refuse to bend the knee; honestly explain to the electorate how austerity is negating local democracy and worsening local services