“Everything is now on the table” for budget cuts next year at Bristol City Council as the city faces unprecedented financial pressures. Bristol mayor Marvin Rees warned there are “no longer any red lines” as the council could cut funding for libraries and children’s centres.
Early next week details should be published of how the city’s public services could be changed to balance the council’s books next year. Finance bosses currently believe the council needs to find between £37 million and £62 million in budget savings.
As well as sky-high inflation, another issue adding to the city’s financial pressures is the turmoil in Westminster. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delayed the autumn financial statement, which includes details of how much cash councils will get, from October 31 to November 17.
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This means council bosses have little idea how much government funding they will receive, which will have a huge effect on the scale of any potential budget cuts in Bristol. Nonetheless, a public consultation will launch next week with budget proposals, including cuts to services.
During a cabinet meeting, on Tuesday November 1, Mr Rees said: “Not only are individuals and households facing these unprecedentedly challenging challenges of just living, but those very organisations that are most needed in times of this kind of crisis are also facing challenges of just operating. With inflation in wages, heating bills, food supply, materials for the infrastructure we’re trying to build like housing, it’s an incredibly challenging time.
“It looks at the moment like a best-case scenario of around £37 million in savings for 2023–24, that’s about 10% of our budget. Worst-case scenario goes north of £62 million. At the moment, we are just about to go out early next week to the public with a number of proposals that we have to take to you to talk about how we balance our budget.
“There are no longer any red lines. There is no pain-free future available to local government anywhere in the country right now. Whereas we would talk with absolute commitment on our libraries, our children’s centres, our council tax reduction scheme, travel to school, everything is now on the table.”
Councils across the country are struggling financially at the moment, due to record levels of inflation and rising demand for services. While it’s still unclear what will be in the government’s autumn statement, experts expect billions in budget cuts, which will most likely include grants given to local councils.
A few councils have recently gone bankrupt, due to extreme financial pressure. This ends up with government administrators taking over the council’s purse-strings and deciding themselves how to balance the books.
While some of the council’s money for day-to-day spending comes from local council tax and business rates, the majority of its funding comes from government grants. In the autumn statement, Jeremy Hunt, the chancellor, will announce only headline figures for local government, and full details will not be available until December. The council’s budget will likely be signed off next February, before the financial year begins in April.
Mr Rees said: “Our challenge is to navigate our way through this challenge, minimising the harm to the city. But we’re left with a high degree of uncertainty. Having harmed the economy, the government has not been very open with us about what they are going to do to stand with local government right now.”
Deputy mayor Craig Cheney, cabinet member for finance, added: “Trying to make informed decisions now — I have only a very vague idea what they might have in mind — is next to impossible. It’s no way to run a country. We’ll go out to consultation on a raft of changes based on a budget gap that might fundamentally change within two weeks. That’s not a great way to run anything. It’s a nightmare and getting worse.”
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