Liverpool City Council budget shows £73 million gap
Options to fill the gap include possible price hikes in council tax and increasing the times cars need to pay for on-street parking
Liverpool council need to fill a £73 million budget gap which is nearly double last years £37 million.
Mayor Joanne Anderson told us: “I thought last year the budget was the most challenging thing I’d ever had to do, but this year is horrendous really.”
Options to fill the gap include possible price hikes in council tax, extending the times cars need to pay for on-street parking and increased rents for council buildings.
The council have also said they hope to make savings by reviewing the number of Libraries, slimming down funding for arts and reducing money spent on councils' welfare support schemes.
The authority has seen budget cuts of nearly half a billion pounds over the past 12 years.
Mayor Anderson said that central government has suggested upping council tax, but that wouldn’t be enough for Merseyside.
She said: “A council tax increase for us doesn’t bring in the same level of income as a much posher area down south because the majority of our housing are in band A and B of council tax support.
“So, it doesn’t really help us that and it’s just very painful to knock it on to other people.”
Councils across the UK hold financial reserves so they can plan for the future and bridge gaps if needed.
However, essential services need this money.
Mayor Anderson said: “The funny thing about reserves is they are meant to be saves for a rainy day aren’t they.
“I feel this is very much a rainy day.
“But we have to have a level of reserves, as you can imagine you know we employ nearly six thousand people.
“We put more reserves in last year, we upped our percentage of reserves but we’re not at the recommended level that we should be that.”
The council have also said transformation is key and will be a focus if they are to modernize.
They will be looking to create a new model of assessment in Adult Services and reduce reliance on Merseyside B&Bs for people who find themselves homeless.
They will also introduce an early help and safeguarding model for families in Children's Services with the hope of lowering the amount of children in care.
The City Council said they want to make every pound it spends count to help the people of Merseyside though they have limited resources.
Interim Chief Executive Theresa Grant said: “Residents have told us what they want from their council. Better local services and a council that provides value for money.
“We need to make wholesale changes to deliver this within the budget we have available to us, particularly with the squeeze on public spending and rising costs.
“Continuing as we are is not an option, if we are to deliver best value for residents and local services.”
The final proposal will be agreed in the new year for consideration at a Budget Council meeting in March 2023.