New council cuts “beyond the pale” – Leader

The very future of council services is under threat because of a new and unprecedented swathe of Government budget cuts that are “beyond the pale”.

The latest figures show that the local authority has to find many millions more pounds in savings, on top of the millions already cut from its budgets.

It means that, by 2015/16, Bury will have seen some £54 million of cuts – nearly 50% of its controllable budget. This equates to over £750 for every household in Bury.

Councillor Mike Connolly, leader of Bury Council, says the Government is taking a “scorched earth” policy towards councils. He is urging all Bury residents and their representatives to join the Fair Deal for Bury campaign – see http://www.bury.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8179.

At its budget meeting in February, the council agreed a package of cuts totalling £7.4 million towards potential funding reductions in 2014/15. The Government has now confirmed that a threatened further 1% funding reduction will go ahead; along with other pressures, this now means Bury has to find an additional £2.2 million next year.

For the year 2015/16, draft figures from the Government suggest that Bury will have to find £15.8 million in savings, although it is likely be early 2014 before the Government confirms its funding allocations which makes planning incredibly difficult for the council.

Cllr Connolly said that the Government had announced in its comprehensive spending review that local government would face cuts of 10%.

“This has now turned out to be a 14% cut, worth at least £16 million pounds of more devastating cuts to our services on top of the £28 million we had already identified up to the end of 2013-14. By the time we get to the end of 2015-16 this total rises to £54 million; and this doesn’t include any demand pressures we are facing in Children’s and Adults Services.”

The increased reduction is due to the Government top-slicing council grants and holding back council funds to address shortfalls nationally in Business Rates income.

He added: “This latest set of swingeing cuts is off the scale. The residents of Bury deserve better and we are all paying a heavy price for the cut, slash and burn policies of this government who treat local authorities as the whipping boys for their public expenditure cuts programme. I don’t see any Whitehall departments losing their budgets on this scale. What we can expect are services which are likely to be radically different and the poorer because of these cuts. Because of this the very future of local government as we know it is threatened.

“We will have to produce a new budget plan like no other in the history of Bury, where we will see much more hardship and many more vulnerable and not so vulnerable people being affected.”

The council is now drawing up a Plan for Change 3, to go out for consultation in November, following two previous exercises to ask Bury people what their priorities are as the council struggles to balance its budget with ever diminishing resources.

Cllr Connolly added: “The words ‘we are all in this together’ will ring very hollow for many of our most vulnerable residents and our loyal staff here in Bury for many, many years to come.

“Throughout these hard times, I have always hoped to see the elusive light at the end of the tunnel – these latest cuts mean that that light is further away than ever.

“I urge all political groups, MPs and our residents in Bury to join our Fair Deal for Bury campaign and fight for the survival of the local services we all need.”

ENDS

Press release issued: 12 September 2013.