Two-year budget and Council Tax approved
INVERCLYDE Council has set its budget and Council Tax rates for the next two years.
At a special full council meeting today, Thursday 29 February 2024, spending plans for 2024/25 and 2025/26 were agreed.
It was also agreed that the council will raise Council Tax by 8.2 per cent in 24/25 and six per cent in 25/26.
The decision to increase Council Tax by 8.2 per cent in 24/25 means the Band D level will increase £117.24 to £1,547.01 – or an extra £2.25 a week.
The council had initially been facing an estimated £12.5m funding gap over the next two financial years.
Today’s budget and Council Tax plans along with the use of council reserves means the local authority will fulfil its legal obligation to set a balanced budget without the loss of jobs and minimal cuts to services.
The overall budget is worth almost £250m each year and a four-year £72m capital budget to fund one-off infrastructure costs was also agreed at the meeting.
Councillor Stephen McCabe, leader of Inverclyde Council, said: “This has been the most difficult budget process that I have been involved in during my 17 years with the council.
“Despite the challenges, we are fulfilling our legal obligation to deliver a balanced budget and, more importantly, we are delivering a budget that protects frontline jobs and services for the people of Inverclyde.
“At a time when Inverclyde is haemorrhaging jobs in the private sector, we have kept council jobs losses to the bare minimum. The budget savings options put out for consultation included 110 jobs losses. This budget doesn’t include any of those proposals.
“A two-year budget also provides some short-term stability and a degree of certainty for council staff and the residents we serve. As anyone involved in setting the budget will attest to, it is a long and tiring process that takes its toll so this should provide some light relief for the next couple of years.”
On the rate of Council Tax, Councillor McCabe said: “Council Tax has risen by an average of 1.1 per cent in Inverclyde over the last 16 years, well below the average rate of inflation, which is a big reason why the council is facing a huge budget deficit. This cannot continue. Councils are at breaking point.
“By increasing Council Tax and utilising reserves we have kept service cuts to a minimum.
“A quarter of households in Inverclyde do not benefit from a Council Tax freeze as they are in receipt of Council Tax Reduction, and they suffer most when services and jobs are cut.
“To put it into context, 2,300 of Inverclyde’s 40,000 households are exempt from Council Tax and 9,000 households don’t pay any more when Council Tax is increased as they are in receipt of Council Tax Reduction. So, up to 28 per cent of households in Inverclyde won’t pay any more in Council Tax next year.
“The average weekly increase for the remaining 28,700 households is £1.99. For those living in Band A properties (46 per cent of households) the weekly increase is £1.50 and for those in Band B (16 per cent of households) the increase is £1.75.
“An 8.2 per cent increase means the average Council Tax rise over the last 17 years is 1.5 per cent, still significantly below the rate of inflation.
“We are today exercising our right as a council to set our own rate of Council Tax and to decline the Scottish Government offer to freeze the rate for next year.”
It was also agreed at the meeting to provide an extra £5.558m for social care services, a year-on-year increase of 8.2 per cent.
Funding was also announced to support young people and families by making summer playschemes free to attend on a permanent basis and to pay the Real Living Wage to the council’s Modern Apprentices.
The council will also continue to fund universal free school meals for all primary school pupils – the only local authority in Scotland to do so, and to provide free swimming during holiday periods and grants to many youth organisations and sports clubs.
A four-year £72m capital budget was also approved that will see projects including:
- £4.5m on community regeneration
- £3.3m on supporting vulnerable people with disabilities to remain at home through our scheme of assistance
- £1.9m on environmental projects
- £5.5m in modernising our vehicle fleet
- £3.5m on Net Zero projects
- £10.9m on road and footways improvements
- £14.5m on maintaining our education estate to a high standard
- £9m on a new learning disability day centre for vulnerable adults.
Councillor McCabe said: “This is a budget that protects jobs, protects services, supports the most vulnerable, supports young people, and invests in our community.”
The budget papers are available in the ‘Committees & Meetings’ section of the Inverclyde Council website or via the link in the Related Links section of this page and a recording of the meeting is available to watch on the council’s YouTube channel via the Other Websites section of this page.