IT seems to be the trend at Bradford Council these days to start looking for charity or private sector expertise and investment every time something needs large injections of cash.

First it was education, then the great bargain council house sell-off; after that the head of corporate affairs suggested temporarily selling off all the public buildings. Now private investment is on the future menu for running our swimming pools and leisure centres. A charitable trust is already at work raising cash to refurbish the Kings Hall/Winter Garden complex on Station Road.

Where will it end? Will City Hall mandarins only be satisfied when everything is being run by charities or private companies and the local authority's social responsibilities have been completely abandoned?

And the creation of the town of Ilkley as a begging-bowl-in-hand trust, desperately seeking handouts from all and sundry should make us all feel slightly uncomfortable. Ilkley is an affluent town with more than enough Council Tax cash to go round so there should be plenty of local authority investment in our leisure and heritage buildings.

But as Bradford Council admits, there has been so much under-investment for the past 15, or even 20, years that public buildings are in bad shape.

Over the past few years, Bradford Council has had to admit failing its council house tenants, spectacularly under-performed in providing the district's education and now is telling us that it has let the majority of our public buildings crumble to the extent where there is not enough money to repair them.

Private companies and finance will provide loans and expertise for repairs and services but there is no guarantee those services will be an improvement on what has gone before.

And any private money invested will have to be paid back with substantial interest, which will only lead to further cash problems in the future.

Some people might say that if Bradford Council cannot run services or take care of its assets what is the point of its existence?

The very fact that the council is considering bringing in private companies to run leisure buildings and the idea of creating a massive charitable trust to cover all Ilkley's buildings are glaring examples of failure.