Councillors expect more from technology

Carried out on behalf of IT industry association Intellect by polling firm ComRes, it shows that 72% believe that in the light of the public spending cuts they will be more dependent on technology. Only 14% disagreed while 14% had no opinion. This is accompanied by figures showing that 95% believe their councils will have to reduce staff numbers, and that 88% believe there is now a willingness to consider more innovative ways of delivering services for less money. Charles Ward, chief operating officer of Intellect, commented: "This serious belt tightening comes at a time when government's new big society and localism agendas will give greater responsibilities and power to local authorities for service delivery. Technology is a powerful tool that can be used to help local authorities to tackle this dual challenge of achieving cost savings while improving the way services are delivered. It is really encouraging to see that local councillors are aware of the potential that technology offers to solve the problems." Responses to other questions highlighted a tension between central and local government following the Comprehensive Spending Review. 52% said they expect the relationship to become more difficult, although only 37% thought there would be a shift in power to the centre during this parliament. The findings are based on responses from 432 councillors from all the main political parties and all types of local authority spread around the country.