Milton Keynes Council agrees 4.99% tax rise and warns of cuts
A council leader has warned of "greater challenges ahead" after his authority agreed a council tax rise of 4.99% from April.Labour's Pete Marland confirmed Milton Keynes City Council needed to impose the maximum increase possible without a referendum "just to get anywhere close to balancing the budget".He said the authority would also have to make savings of £20m to balance its books and further cuts of "at least £32m" in the next three years.Councillors also voted through plans to cut about 100 jobs, although some staff will be redeployed into new roles in adult social care or children's services.
The council has made savings of more than £200m in the last 15 years with more than two-thirds of its budget now spent on care and support for vulnerable children.The authority said it would need an extra £8m to pay for more residential placements for children with complex needs, and £6m to support vulnerable adults. The number of children being taken into care or needing support has also added over £13m to its financial pressures.The council, which has a budget of £286m, said it would continue weekly black bin collections but would introduce a charge for residents who want a second green bin.Marland said a balanced budget was "only possible because of difficult decisions taken... due to a £10m overspend in children's services and the 6% uplift in government funding from the Labour government".He said: "The cost of adult social care and children's care and temporary accommodation are rising and putting this council in a perilous financial position."He added: "We will have to rethink how many of the services are delivered by this council and the authority will not look the same in five years time, regardless of who is in charge."Liberal Democrat opposition leader Jane Carr said: "I have said many times we are in a crisis and we saw it coming. "We could have predicted it but, nevertheless, the shock when it came has derailed even our new government, leaving many councils across the country with hopes for change dashed."She added: "It is what comes next that really bothers me, for I fear it is already too late to save some of our services, particularly non-statutory."The Conservatives, lead by group leader Shazna Muzammil, voted against the budget.She claimed it "falls short of supporting our young, supporting our elderly and supporting our most vulnerable"."The financial mismanagement on display is unacceptable and comes at a significant cost to our taxpayers," she said.
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Former councillor Frank Russell pictured with his Westie, Bonny Frank Russell was the best of Edinburgh. A Labour city councillor for more than 20 years and a season ticket holder at Tynecastle, with a favourite spot in the famous Diggers pub (The Athletic Arms). Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... He was a Broomhouse legend, where he lived for most of his life until a recent move to Musselburgh. A fervent music fan, he supported Edinburgh's Jazz & Blues festival for decades. A bookbinder by trade, he loved books, particularly crime fiction which he devoured, especially Ian Rankin's work. But above all, he loved Janice, his wife of more than 55 years, and their small, tight-knit family of two children and four grandkids, not forgetting Bonny, their Westie. Frank was a quiet man. His main job on the council was heading up the city's personnel committee during Labour's heyday in the 1990s and early noughties. Unlike some of his contemporaries, he didn't seek the headlines. Most of his work was in the backroom. A lifelong trade unionist, he was also a fair boss. He was rigorous in ensuring that the city's workforce had the best conditions, but at the same time delivered for Edinburgh's citizens. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And for many years, he was chair of the council's Labour group, a tough task given that he had to manage some rather large egos and more than a few eccentric personalities. It is not an exaggeration to say that Frank's often low-key, but always wise, approach to Labour's internal politics probably averted a few disasters for the administration. And he was a mentor to many young politicians, myself included. He didn't see new kids on the block as a threat, as many ambitious politicians do. Instead, he and Janice – a brilliant local campaigner – took them under their wing, always quick to offer the best advice. As the Scottish Secretary of State, Ian Murray, said in the wake of Frank's death last Monday, it was Frank who encouraged him to go into formal politics. 'It was always traditional, after [Labour party] AGMs, to go and have a few pints,' he wrote on Facebook. 'I went to the Sighthill Hotel…and after six pints of cider, Frank Russell said to me 'do you fancy standing for election?' And I stupidly said yes. I won the council seat. The rest is history, really.' Ian also echoed many others when he said that Frank had the best political instincts. And that is because he embodied Labour's true values of community, public service, fairness and aspiration. Labour leaders came and went, in the city council as well as in the country, but Frank held true to his principles. He entered politics, not because he adhered to a rigid dogma, but because he wanted to help build a better community, city and country for everyone, regardless of their background. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Frank was a huge Beatles fan – he was in the audience when they played at Edinburgh's ABC cinema in 1964. He preferred the melodic genius of Paul McCartney to the more eccentric grit of John Lennon, but there is only one song going through my head when I think of Frank. A working class hero is something to be, wrote Lennon in 1970. Frank Russell was that working class hero.
