by The Commentator on 19 February 2013 11:19

The Commentator has learned today that another Labour council has been implicated in the utilisation of taxpayer resources to propagandise against government spending reductions. The news follows on from recent revelations about how the Labour-run Lambeth council used over £600 in taxpayer money to propagandise against spending cuts.

Nottingham City Council has been displaying advertisements juxtaposing 'ordinarily' dressed members of the public, holding up a sign that insists they were to "lose £158", while suited, smug-looking individuals reportedly from Windsor held up a sign indicating they were only losing £15 as a result of cuts to government expenditure.

The endeavour has been called, "lazy, socialist propaganda", though writing for the Guardian last year, the Labour party council leader, Jon Collins, stated, "I'm damn sure that at Nottingham city council there is absolutely no political gesturing in the very tough budget decisions we've had to make as a result of the government's savage cuts."

The adverts are reported to have cost at least £2727, almost double the average monthly Nottingham salary - a figure that represents 17 people's 'losses' as per the Labour council's own advertising. Councillor Steve Parton told The Commentator, "This is an old tactic, and frankly a rather amateurish and pathetic one."

The full cost of the adverts is yet to be realised, sources tell The Commentator, with the council utilising its own magazine to provide a full back-page spread for the add, at any opportunity cost of around £3000, the price it would usually charge businesses for the prominent position. The 'Nottingham Arrow', which is funded by the council, costs £165,000 of taxpayer's money to produce and distrubute.

The news comes on the back of recent reports showing that Nottingham only has to make 0.5 percent of spending reductions, while other councils such as Bolsover are due to have to cut by up to nine percent of their budgets.

Nottingham Council has historically been at loggerheads with the Conservative-led government. In 2011, the council leader refused to comply with government transparency endeavours, a position that many believe was due to the council's rampant wasteful spending. It was reported at the time that the council spent over £250,000 on lampost adverts setting out a 'vision' for Nottingham.

Nottingham Council is considered a 'Labour fortress'. At no point in its recent political history have opposition parties held more than one third of the seats on council.

Further information provided to The Commentator has stated that the poster has also been screened on the big screens inside Loxley House, the council’s headquarters on a rolling news slideshow.