Council budget will safeguard vital services in "very difficult" year
Thursday, February 2 2006
Scottish Borders' Council's ruling administration is confident that its budget and spending plans for 2006/07 will protect vital council services in what is likely to be a "very difficult" year because of what Council leaders describe as "unrealistic" assumptions by the Scottish Executive.
Speaking at a media briefing on Monday 30 January, Council Leader David Parker said: "The administration has arrived at a
balanced budget which we will present to the whole Council for approval on 9 February. A great deal of hard work has gone
in behind the scenes to arrive at the figures we are releasing today. Whilst there have been differences of opinion, the two
groups have reached agreement over the level of Council Tax and over the need for changes in spending priorities. We have
sought to protect existing services as far as possible; we have also been mindful of the need to pay for additional levels
of service and a number of new burdens and we have sought to keep the increase in the level of Council Tax as low as possible."
In his speech Councillor Parker called for what he called "a more rational approach" to funding from central government. "This
year, Scottish Ministers have sought to impose efficiency savings on local government which, when continued over the next
two years, will have a very significant impact on the services provided by all councils. Fortunately, Scottish Borders Council
is committed to modernisation and finding new ways of providing services efficiently and effectively without any waste.
We have already had self-imposed efficiency savings targets which have freed up considerable resources to be ploughed into
front-line services and we will continue to find ways to provide services at the lowest possible cost."
Finance Spokesman Neil Calvert said: "The Government continues to fail to provide sufficient money adequate to pay for all
the services we believe the people of the Borders need and want.
It is true that the amount of money we will receive from the Government next year is higher than for this year, but it does
not properly take into account all our additional costs; the cost of providing services to increasing numbers of people; the
additional cost of new burdens which are not fully funded; and the full cost of pay awards; pensions; the single status agreement
and increases in costs, particularly for energy, well above the level of inflation."
"Against this background, it is unrealistic in the extreme for Scottish Ministers to expect Councils to restrict Council Tax
increases to 2.5% and last year, this Administration said that Council Tax was likely to rise by 5%. In fact, we have been
able to restrict the rise to 4.4% or a rise of £45 per year at Band D, or 87p per week. People should not be under any illusion.
We have had to take some painful decisions to keep within the available resources at this level. Whilst we have been able
to avoid making many severe reductions in services, we have had to rely on reducing our financial reserves and we will be
seeking to make efficiency savings wherever they can be found."
Both Councillors said that they wanted to stress that unless there was a substantial change in central government policy,
future budgets could be very much more difficult and service reductions could not be ruled out.
"Under the circumstances, I believe that this is the best budget we can devise," said Councillor Parker. "The Government
provided just £7 million more money than last year. The additional costs we face in the coming year total £17.6 million.
In developing our budget we have had to find the extra £10 million to close that gap. It has not been easy but we have managed
it. We have kept the increase in Council Tax to the lowest figure we could manage without making swingeing cuts to vital
services. Our increase is likely to be less than the average figure throughout Scotland. Two thirds of householders
in the Borders will be required to pay less than the weekly increase of 87p and one-quarter of households will only be asked
to pay 58p per week increase."
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