The Future Looks Bleak
The Town Council’s Policy and Resources Committee met last week. Its main business was to consider and approve the Medium Term Financial Plan.
Introducing the Plan, Finance Manager Dan Austin reported the Town Council’s finances were currently very healthy, but outlined significant future challenges facing the Council in the years ahead. Chiefly, changes to Government legislation have reduced the council’s tax-raising capacity by £100,000 over the last two years, and will leave the Council facing cuts of a further £100,000 over the next four years.
In addition, it seems that the government is to implement a 2% ‘cap’ on council tax increases by town councils, so there is little leeway for the Council to meet the deficit by increasing Council Tax.
As a result, Mr Austin outlined increasing pressures on council finances, concluding that, by the financial year 2018-19, it is likely that the Council will be in a position where there is no contingency sum.There will be no contribution to capital reserves, and no further scope for efficiency savings.
If nothing changes, beyond 2018-19, therefore, the Town Council would need to consider reductions to services and establishment.
Members received the Plan, thanking the officers that – because of their careful financial management and planning-for-the-future – the Council has at least now been given four years to prepare for such a bleak future.
The Medium term Financial Plan makes difficult reading, but it is available online at http://bit.ly/GATCMTFP14-19.
