| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Re:Cllr Ruth Cadbury at today's read-in | |
| Posted by: | Ed Mayne | |
| Date/Time: | 06/02/11 12:12:00 |
| Steve and Neil To clarify, the Labour Council does NOT want any libraries to close. The council is being forced to make £18m savings in our next budget because of the cuts in our central government funding. This amounts to roughly 25% of our budget over the next 4 years. So we will have to make £18m of savings the year after and approximately £12m in each of the 2 years after that. We therefore had no choice but to consult on every option available to achieve this £18m in time for the Council budget setting in March. Local residents clearly do not want libraries to close so we are exploring possibilities to keep them open. See the quote from the Council website below: "The public response to libraries was also positive, with 57% of residents wanting to retain all the sites. As a result of the public budget consultation, Hounslow Council has proposed that immediate savings can be delivered by deferring some book purchases, minimising the risk of library closure. In the meantime, a more specific library consultation is underway which will inform the longer term strategy." Some on this thread have suggested a "small" increase in Council tax to fund services. But the Tory-Lib Dem coalition are offering financial incentives for Councils to keep Council Tax frozen or reduced. So a small increase in Council tax would actually make the Council's financial situation worse. This is not to mention the fact that it is unfair to penalise local residents by raising Council tax in times of financial hardship. |