Member Article

Burnley set for fresh round of budget cuts

Burnley Council is set to make further budget cuts over the next two years, with details set out in a financial report to be discussed later this month.

The council is preparing for severe cuts in the light of the Government’s austerity programme and identifying “transformational savings and efficiencies” to balance the budget and protect essential services to local residents.

A report to the council’s executive, which meets on 15th October, by director of resources Helen Seechurn says the council faces finding potential savings of £5.2 million (or a 31% cut in the current annual budget) by 2015/16.

The result would be a smaller council than at present, focusing even more on the top priority services such as boosting the local economy and keeping our streets clean and safe, meaning that some activities that currently add to the quality of life would be stopped.

“The council, in response to the Government austerity programme, is preparing for the significant downsizing that is expected to occur by 2015/16,” she said.

“The scale of the challenge requires radical transformation and reconfiguration of council services and a strategic reassessment of priorities. To respond to such a challenge, careful planning, consultation and implementation are required.”

Councillor Mark Townsend, executive member for resources and performance management, said: “This council needs to find unprecedented savings to remain financially sustainable over the coming years while, at the same time, protecting and continuing to provide high quality services to its residents. We have some very tough decisions to make, because of the Government’s decision to slash local government funding in the way that they are.

“Government proposals to cut further the cash given to Burnley and allocate it instead to promote house building in the wealthy south tells us everything we need to know about their priorities.

“Burnley, which faces major social and economic issues, is being unfairly impacted by budget cuts and there seems to be no end in sight. We have to find a way through the toughest times local government has seen in living memory and make sure we protect services and local people, especially the most vulnerable in our society.

“We have to look at every pound we spend across the council and plan for the future, putting into place measures that will mitigate, as much as possible, the effect these massive budget cuts will have.”

A further report will go to a future executive meeting on a proposal to use up to £500,000 of reserves to support longer-term reform of council services.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .