There is no doubt Local Government Minister Eric Pickles has been getting his teeth stuck into councils up and down the country.

His Department of Communities and Local Government has overseen severe cuts to town hall budgets. But The Insider had no idea the damage Mr Pickles was sustaining.

Rumour has it the controversial figure (Labour dislike him and even some Tories in Oxfordshire have their doubts, but not in public of course) was due to visit Oxford last week to talk at a university debate.

But he cancelled late in the day as he was having dental surgery.

So, it appears, town hall budgets, like sweets and toffees, are no good for the gnashers.

lThe row over the future of Oxford City Council’s area committees rumbles on. Defending Labour’s plan to downgrade the meetings, that devolve decisions on planning and grants to local neighbourhoods, deputy leader Ed Turner said: “It cannot be right to hold committees where it costs the taxpayer more money per attendee than it would cost to send them to watch Chelsea Football Club.”

A salient point. Also, it is probably cheaper to send those long-suffering residents to a Labour Party shin-dig with former PM Gordon Brown, pictured, complete with canapes and a few glasses of vino (just £40 a pop for Gordon).

Come to think of it, residents had more chance of meeting one of their their local Labour councillors at last week’s party beano than at the (eventually cancelled) north east area committee.

Of course, the Greens and Lib Dems have tried desperately to resuscitate the flagging concept, to engage with the masses, or is it because it hands them power in east and north Oxford respectively?

l IN the event of a fire, consult the safety posters and follow their commands. Or so we are usually told. That’s sound advice in most cases, but perhaps not the best thing to do should a blaze break out at Didcot Parkway railway station.

We only say that because it seems one eagle-eyed commuter may have discovered a flaw in the station’s masterplan.

Posting on the Railway Eye website – a must-read for The Insider – the passenger, known only as Concerned of Caversham, uploaded a picture he had taken on the platform.

It shows one such safety poster quite clearly stating: “In the case of fire, raise the alarm, call the fire brigade, dial 999 and tell them fire at Pangbourne Railway Station.”

Underneath, the anonymous blogger adds, rather mischievously: “Is this a cunning ruse to ensure that any fire does full justice to delightful Didcot?”

Now of course The Insider would never align itself with such a suggestion. But we’re sure station chiefs will now be keen to alter the offending poster.