SNP and Greens strike deal over Glasgow budget - with council tax to rise by 3%
Spending plans are being set out today.
Last updated 17th Feb 2022
A deal has been struck over Glasgow City Council's budget for the year ahead.
The minority SNP group needed backing from other parties to pass their spending plans.
They confirmed late last night that an agreement had been reached with the Greens.
In a Tweet, city treasurer Ricky Bell said: "This budget responds to covid recovery, cost of living crisis, and the priorities of Glaswegians."
Green group co-leader, Cllr Jon Molyneux, said: "We made progress on all our priorities - helping people with the cost of living, reopening more local venues and accelerating climate action."
Council tax is also set to rise by 3% from the start of April.
That means:
Band A will rise from £1230 to £1269.
Band B will go up from £1435 to £1481
Band C will go up from £1640 to £1694.
Band D will rise from £1845 to £1905.
Band E will rise from £2382.27 to £2452.
Band F will rise from £2915.51 to £3000.56
Band G will rise from £3479.55 to £3582.95
Band H will rise from £4214.06 to £4440.51
Roads, cleansing and leisure
Labour is proposing “significant investment” to address the “cleansing crisis” in the city.
It says it would also retain the affordable warmth dividend for the elderly, which was brought back on a one-year basis in October following calls from the Labour group, after being scrapped during last year’s budget.
Cllr Malcolm Cunning said his party wants to invest in Glasgow Life to reopen more facilities and put money into the bulk uplift service so it can be done “at no charge”.
He added his group plans to freeze some charges, including bereavement costs, and will use a “significant amount of reserves” as well as a 3% council tax rise to find around £12m towards the budget gap.
It also intends to use some Scottish Government ring-fenced money, for maintaining public-teacher ratios, as it is a “target that we have been meeting for years”. The money “can be put down as a saving but makes no difference to the service”, Cllr Cunning said.
Conservative group leader Thomas Kerr said his group’s budget proposals, which include a council tax freeze, stood up for the people of Glasgow.
It also proposes a return to two-weekly bin collections, scrapping the bulk uplift charge, an increase in support for children and young people in foster and kinship care, retaining the affordable warmth payment and £1.5m for road repairs.
Cllr Kerr said: “Many Glaswegian families are struggling and we have firmly recognised that with our plans to freeze council tax as well as retaining affordable warmth payments for our elderly population.”
The Conservative group said its budget is fully costed, but Cllr Cunning questioned how they can propose a council tax freeze without taking “awful cuts options”.
Union protest
The Unison union is going to stage a protest outside the City Chambers on Thursday morning, urging councillors to avoid cuts to services.
Branch Secretary Brian Smith said: "Glasgow's councillors should use some of the city's unallocated reserves of £31M to set a "no cuts" budget, and then lead a proper campaign to win more money for the city.
"This has been a consistent call from the trade unions and it remains a serious alternative to just passing on cuts year after year. Glasgow needs more money and meekly managing austerity budgets from both Holyrood and Westminster has been a failed strategy".
Cost of living crisis
This budget comes in the context of the rapidly increasing cost of living.
On Wednesday, it was confirmed inflation had hit its highest level in almost 30 years, peaking at 5.5% in January.
Rising energy prices and fuel costs have been the biggest factors in driving inflation to more than double the Bank of England's 2% target, though food and drink prices and many everyday essentials have also been increasing.
It is set to worsen in the spring after Ofgem announced an increase in the energy price cap, which will add around £700 on average to annual gas and electricity charges for millions of consumers.
The Scottish Government has confirmed homes in council tax bands A-D will receive a £150 rebate, in a bid to ease some of the pressure.