Somerset Liberal Democrats PRESS NOTICE

Monday 6th February 2017

Jane Lock calls for more detail in County Budget

Liberal Democrat County Group Leader Jane Lock has reacted with concern to the budget proposals put forward by the Tories today at County Hall.

• Everyone acknowledges that Somerset County Council has a crisis in Adult Social Care and also in Children’s Social Services. And that the finances are in meltdown.
• Today in the Tory run Cabinet meeting John Osman confirmed that despite the huge funding gap from Government, neither he nor the cabinet had not even considered a asking residents their opinion through a referendum. This despite the Tories failure to ask each household for an extra 35p a week, which has left a massive £25 million black hole in the County’s finances and is the single cause of the level of savage cuts inflicted on services, yet again. And Osman had written to the Prime Minister in September 2016 calling for help.
• Cllr Osman also had the gall to say that the Conservatives are not responsible for the crisis. This despite the Children’s Services being reduced to a very low base on his watch. Our children’s Services have now been “inadequate” for the past 5 years and this service is still massively overspending.
• The Cabinet later agreed in the meeting to transfer £5.975 million from contingencies and a further £6 million from the capital fund, to cover massive overspends.

Following the Cabinet meeting, Jane Lock said.

“This is a typical Tory budget. No clarity, full of errors and no one knows which services will be cut in any detail. I deplore the financial incompetence shown by this Tory Cabinet. They are hiding the cuts, yet want to pass on to all of us Council Tax increases of 1.99%, 2% and the Somerset Rivers Authority precept of 1.25% again, without telling us what services will see what cuts.

The Somerset Rivers Authority precept is especially unfair, as no other major local authority in the UK is calling upon residents to pay for a National issue.  These increases are following the increases last year where Somerset Council Tax payers had the highest % increase of any authority. None of us can afford another Tory run Council in May.

ENDS.

For further information, please contact Theo Whitaker – organiser@yeovil-libdems.org.uk / 0788414539.

The Agenda running to 145 pages for the budget can be found here.

http://democracy.somerset.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=134&MId=326&Ver=4

 

 

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