ZERO COUNCIL TAX INCREASE - LIB DEMS "RAINY DAY" BUDGET
February 18, 2010 9:00 AM
package totalling £10.4 millions of savings
Lib Dem County Councillors today (Thursday 18th February) proposed a package of cuts at County Hall which would result in no increase to current Council Tax bills with no effect on services to Kent residents.
In a package totalling £10.4 millions of savings, the Lib Dems proposed:
- cutting Councillors Allowances ( £100,000) and top Officers bonuses( £100,000),
- axing the free KCC newspaper "Around Kent" (£153,000) and cutting publicity budgets by 20% (£750,000)
- pulling the plug on the £600-per-call Healthwatch call scheme (£200,000)
- using unspent £2.5 million of savings from last year' s 2008-9 budget.
- saving £5m by putting all council highway works out to competitive tender , open to local smaller firms.
- taking the budget for KentTV as a saving (£500,000).
During the County Council meeting the Lib Dems argued that KCC should not put up Council Tax to meet Asylum Seeker costs, as these should be met by Government as in previous years (£3m) .
Lib Dem Leader and Opposition Leader Trudy Dean said;
" We should do everything we can to reduce the burden on Council Tax payers who are suffering the worst recession in thirty years and an inflation running 1.5% above the Government's 2%target. The Council has put aside money for a rainy day, and this is it!"
Conservatives have spent one million pounds getting rid of just seven senior officers (2005-2010). Two million pounds wasted on the failed 2-year KentTV pilot. Two million pounds costs from the failed Turner Contemporary One still outstanding . Most of our investment in Iceland is still not recovered. And this year with our worst snow fall in four decades KCC forgot to clear snow from our pavements - Council Tax payers in Kent should not be expected to pay more for this poor level of service.
Editors Note:
- The Council already holds £25 million pounds in general reserves with a further £100 million in funds reserved for special projects.
- Last year the £5 million underspend as put into an "Economic Downturn Reserve" which has been used to fund the £1m pothole purge.
- When it comes to self publicity, KCC was the fifth highest spending Local Authority in England and Wales in 2007-08. Infact KCC expenditure on publicity had risen a whopping 300% since 1996/97, from £1,409,000 to £5,683,000!