Election sweeteners or prudent budget?

Hamish Hutchinson • Published 16 Feb 2012 08:00 2 Comments

IT was described as a "socialist budget", full of "election sweeteners" and "prudent".

On Thursday, the SNP-led administration of Clackmannanshire Council set out its first, and only, budget before the upcoming local government elections.

It outlined a raft of political priorities that included the expansion of breakfast clubs across all primary schools, extra cash for Ochil Leisure Enterprise, an increase in the minimum living wage and the creation of a fund to aesthetically improve communities.

The budget also highlighted £1.9 million of efficiency savings approved last year which included a 50 per cent reduction in nursery teachers.

Speaking at the special meeting, council leader Gary Womersley said, "I genuinely believe that this budget delivers after five weeks in administration, more than four and a half years of Labour's obvious inability to manage the council's finances ever could.

"That it does against a backdrop of the real term cuts to face this council, unlike Labour's failing against an enviable backdrop of historic real-term increases in budget, albeit squandered in the futile disgraceful pursuit by Labour of trying to mitigate their own financial failings and lassitude."

Council tax will be frozen for the fifth year maintaining bills at 2007/08 levels while paid for school meals will remain at the same price as they have done for the last eight years. Kinship Carers will receive £273,000 and planned changes to school transport have been scrapped.

The SNP has promised a leisure review - expected by the end of March - while the homelessness team is to receive an increase of £400,000 to offset changes to the benefit system which are likely to have an impact on levels of applicants.

A total of £100,000 has been earmarked for the outcome of the independent review of childcare services due at the end of March.

Mr Womersley added, "The whole budget is underpinned by prudence and good financial stewardship, so we will be making these increased investments while improving our levels of reserves and decreasing this council's debt levels."

The Labour group had put forward its own budget which sought to invest £500,000 in roads, set aside £100,000 to resolve the ongoing dispute of Alva Glen Hotel and acknowledged that money would be available for the outcome of the child services review.

However, after a brief adjournment, the group decided against presenting its figures, angry that it would be viewed as an amendment to the SNP budget, therefore disallowing the ability to sum up.

Labour councillors were also aggrieved that they could not question the SNP group on its political priorities.

Councillor Bobby McGill said, "We were hoping for a level playing field but that's not today."

Labour colleague Janet Cadenhead said the SNP budget could not have been possible without the hard work of the previous administration.

She said, "From 2010/11 we have taken £6 million of savings in one year and £10 million in the other. This has allowed the SNP to present the budget that it has today."

She raised concerns that it did not take account of the projected funding shortfall from the Scottish Government of £7.008m for 2013/14 and £6.499m for 2014/15.

Ms Cadenhead added, "It is very nice of the SNP to offer election sweeteners but they don't help us in the years ahead."

Lib Dem councillor John Biggam welcomed the extra cash for the Alva pool and the minimum living wage increase.

He said, "I'm in favour of the minimum living wage but I realise that most of the council's budget spend is on wages. I would like to see whether we could do something at the top end of the scale and bring the differentials from the top down.

"Both Donald (Cllr Balsillie) and I have been talking with OLE. This is an important initiative and it is important that they have every opportunity to get up and running."

However he was swiftly reminded by SNP councillor Walter McAdam - who had hoped for more out of the budget in Tillicoultry - that he voted for the last budget that closed the pool.

SNP councillor Janis Paterson was pleased with the redeployment of cash to the roads budget - in particular the Collylands to Fishcross road.

She said, "When I was first elected in 2004 it was one of the first things that was brought to my surgery. I am delighted that I can go back to my constituents and say that it is going to be fixed."

For Councillor Eddie Carrick the budget, his first since quitting the Labour party, was "socialist" in its approach - "it looks at the deprivation areas and the lowest paid" - and welcomed the extra cash for roads.

Conservative councillor Alastair Campbell was more concerned that the additional £250,000 set aside over three years for upgrading the local authorities IT systems would be too little.

He said, "I don't think we've got anywhere near enough money. We find that, for example, social work have three different computer systems in Alloa alone. We have got computing systems that are 30 years old. I don't think the money will touch on what is needed."

He called for the creation of a "pothole hotline" for constituents to tell the local authority the problem roads.

Independent councillor Craig Holden meanwhile attacked Labour and what he called its "non-budget" and lambasted its few political priorities.

He said, "The difference between this budget and every other Labour budget for the last five years is that this budget delivers public services."

The budget was passed with the SNP, independent councillors Eddie Carrick and Craig Holden, and Lib Dem John Biggam all voting for. All Labour councillors plus Tory Alastair Campbell abstained.

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This article appeared in Alloa & Hillfoots Advertiser 15 Feb 12

Have your say. Post a comment on this article.

• 

  mrtilly
  Unregistered User
  Feb 17, 19:01
  Report comment

  6.8% `rent increase for councl tenants how can the SNP justify this when the bathroom replacement progamme is about 2 years behind schedule. Or maybe they don't know this!, if they do what are they going to do about it.
  
  Recommend?   Yes 0     No 2

• 

  James1967
  Unregistered User
  Feb 18, 11:39
  Report comment

  Considering the state of public sector finances in general, this is a welcome and very prudent budget. As an ex-employee of the Council, I was astonished to learn that the opposition were proposing yet another round of stringent cuts £700,000- to staffing, particularly in the face of their disastrous implementation of the Single Status agreement that has seen some employees lose literally thousands of pounds. All-in-all the SNP have shown a no-nonsense, responsible approach to their financial stewardship of teh county finances.
  
  Recommend?   Yes 1     No 0

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