Labour in Crawley mirror the national party - they never learn! |
The
Conservative opposition at Crawley Borough Council have warned of a “Council
Tax Bombshell” being stored up for the future after the controlling Labour
group voted down a Conservative amendment to continue to balance the Council’s
Budget in each of the next three years at last week’s Full Council meeting.
The
Council’s Budget Strategy sets out the Council’s financial policy direction for
future budgets. The previous Conservative Administration had a policy of living
within the Council’s means while not raising Council Tax which meant that
expenditure did not exceed income, known as a balanced budget. This was the
existing position for this year’s Council Budget.
At the Full
Council meeting, the new Labour Administration ditched this policy, hoping that
they might be able to deliver a balance budget in three years’ time. In response,
the Conservatives tabled an amendment calling for the Council’s Budget to
continue to be balanced in each of the next three years.
Conservative
Leader Cllr Duncan Crow (Furnace Green) said “Some of what is in the budget
strategy are Conservative policies and I am pleased Labour are implementing our
policies and accepting the Conservative-led Government’s grant for a fifth
successive Council Tax freeze next year. However, by having no aspiration to
balance the budget and with only a vague reference to balance it in three
years’ time, we are concerned that the current sound financial position of the
Council is at risk and that Labour risk storing up a Council Tax Bombshell that
Crawley residents will have to pay for in the future.”The concerns of Conservative Councillors were echoed by Crawley MP Henry Smith who said “If Crawley residents want an idea of what a future Labour Government would be like with the public finances, they do not have to look very far. Almost immediately, a new Labour controlled Crawley Borough Council has decided to stop living within its means and is risking the creation of a financial mess for Crawley Council Tax payers in the future.”
1 comment:
The party that used to prioritise education learns nothing. As a consequence of their failure to maintain a balanced budget in Crawley, they will sit on £100 million of 'reserves' (your money) making just 1% instead of investing it in the town. Incredibly, when they speak on this subject, they do so with excessive confidence to mask their basic lack of understanding of local government finance.
Bob Lanzer
Post a Comment