BRACKNELL TORIES CON COUNCIL TAXPAYERS AGAIN

11.53.29am GMT Thu 4th Mar 2010

Council approves recommended 3% increase in rate for 2010/11

Bracknell Forest Council last night set another council tax increase for the coming financial year of almost 3%, raising approximately £1.4 million..

As predicted, the Council set the maximum possible increase without running the risk of capping, at a time when inflation is considerably lower and many council taxpayers are either having to accept pay cuts, a pay freeze, or even redundancy. Few are in the happy position enjoyed by the council of being debt-free and without any borrowings.

The Council has reserves totalling nearly £10million (despite writing off £1/2m to losses incurred so far with two Icelandic bank investments) and yet only about £1/2m is being committed to bridging the anticipated shortfall in funding for 2010/11. Last year the Council committed over £2m of comparable reserves to supporting revenue expenditure in very similar circumstances.

Had the Council adopted the same approach this year, any increase in council tax could have been avoided, some highly valued services could have been maintained eg the 'Look In' cafe and/or a number of staff could have kept their jobs.

Commenting on the Council's action, Lib Dem Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Bracknell, Ray Earwicker, said 'it was what he had come to expect from this Council over the years.The Council pleaded poverty and blamed the Government for its funding problems but the truth was the Council simply could not live within its means. Staff numbers had continued to grow and council tax income had more than doubled in the past ten years but it still wasn't enough!

Other councils in the area had managed to reduce their costs and one had even lowered its council tax for the coming year. Bracknell was the smallest of the unitary authorities in Berkshire but it was also one of the most expensive, especially for members' allowances. Services had been cut to the bone and virtually every penny was now being spent on a burgeoning bureaucracy. The need for change had never been greater.'