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In spite of having the second lowest Council Tax in the county and having kept its Council Tax increases to within the rate of inflation for six years running, a Suffolk district council is facing a massive financial challenge because of the need to find savings and efficiencies of at least £3.3m over the next 3 years and, in 2010/11 alone, £1.4m or 12.5% of the budget.
Over the last few years Babergh District Council has been delivering significant year-on-year savings and efficiencies. But the situation facing the Council means that the package of measures required to find £1.4m in relation to its 2010/11 budget will involve making some very difficult choices in order to protect key services such as affordable housing, waste collection, recycling and help for small businesses. Things are likely to get even tougher in subsequent years when details of the Government’s current public spending review is known.
According to Cllr. Nick Ridley, Chairman of Babergh’s Strategy Committee “for an authority that prides itself on its careful financial management we are facing very bleak times indeed. Our aim, though, through the ruthless identification of savings and by entering into new ways of working with other councils, is to make the necessary tough decisions in an ordered way so that we can maintain key services. But it will involve some extremely tough decisions and radical changes in how we do things. The bottom line is that there will be a lot less money in future and it will have to be allocated very carefully to key priorities”.
The Strategy Committee meeting on October 8 will be considering the options available for the Council in finding the £1.4m of savings and efficiencies for next year. The report makes it clear that that all possible cost reduction and income generation measures will need to be considered for implementation and nothing can or should be ruled out at this stage. Even if councillors agree to these measures and they are all achieved, financial planners at the Council estimate that between £350,000 and £450,000 will still need to be found to make the books balance.
“Over the next few years – regardless as to what happens with local government review – Babergh District Council will look very different to today. Our aim, however, is to ensure that the quality of key services we provide or contribute towards will be as good or even better than at present” added Cllr. Ridley.
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