Westmorland and Furness Council’s Portfolio Holder for Finance has announced that he feels he has no choice but to recommend the implementation of increases and charges in a number of service areas following proposed changes to the government’s National Funding Formula for councils. This includes a recommendation to increase Council Tax by 4.99%.
There is also a recommendation to implement charges for all garden waste collection – this recommendation had not been the preferred option but is now being recommended as the council strives to deliver a balanced budget, which is a legal requirement.
At a Cabinet meeting next week, Cabinet members will discuss these recommendations, alongside others, whilst very aware of the sad reality that these recommendations will financially affect every resident in the Westmorland and Furness area.
Cllr Andrew Jarvis, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance, said:
“Since we became aware of the government’s intentions to change its Local Government Funding Formula, we have been warning about the impact that this would have on the council, our residents and our ability to deliver essential services.
“We have looked to get as much as we can from cost savings, but these will not be sufficient to offset the loss in government funding. Consequently, we feel we have no option but to implement increases and charges that we had hoped we could avoid. We recognise the impact that this will have on many families and individuals who continue to struggle with ongoing cost of living.
“In particular, we had been clear that we did not want to charge for ‘all’ garden waste collections. Our firm intention was that the first garden waste bin would be collected for free, with residents only paying an extra annual charge for any extra bins.
“Unfortunately, when we received our provisional funding settlement from government in late December, it became clear we simply couldn’t afford the additional costs of that preferred option. The sharp cut in government funding has left us with no choice but to recommend to Full Council that we implement these charges.”
Cllr Jarvis continued:
“This has been a difficult and challenging recommendation to make, but the reality is the reduced funding from government means that we are having to recommend some tough choices to ensure we can balance the budget and protect investment in frontline services.’’
Key recommendations for Cabinet’s consideration, and its subsequent recommendations to Full Council, include:
- a 4.99% increase in the council’s share of Council Tax.
- A new annual charge of £60 per bin for garden waste collections. This charge will only be applied to residents who choose to use the service and will be managed through an annual subscription.
- Car park charges will be increased by around 10%.
- Increases in the charges for the use of Windermere Ferry, and the removal of the ‘Blue Badge’ exemption.
- That other fees and charges are increased in line with inflation.
Cabinet will consider these proposals on 10 February and then make their recommendations to the council’s budget meeting on 26 February. The council is expecting confirmation of the government’s final financial settlement on 9 February.
