'We must pass a budget tonight'

Adam Hewitt • Last updated 25 Feb 2009 16:59 0 Comments

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COUNCILLORS have pledged to put politics aside to agree a budget this evening following last night's deadlock.

The Labour, Conservative and Lib Dem parties all arrived at yesterday's Reading Borough Council meeting with their own plans for council tax - at 4.24%, 0% and 3.99% respectively - but left it nearly five hours later all unwilling to compromise.

The meeting was instead adjourned and at 6.30pm tonight they will start all over again.

Tory finance chief Cllr David Stevens told the Chronicle today: "It simply has to be done tonight, the council has to set a budget, otherwise payments will start being frozen. Our civic responsibility over-rides any politicking, so having made our point we will make sure that a budget is passed."

But sources in the other parties said the Tories appeared unwilling today to back any budget containing a council tax rise.

Tory leader Andrew Cumpsty seemed to endorse this view this afternoon, saying: "It would be extraordinary if the Labour party on 4.24% and the Lib Dems on basically 4% could not come to an agreement, considering how close they are to each other. It seems to me they are so close they could do a deal. We've made our view very clear, that we would go in a different direction."

He has pledged a performance improvement programme across the whole council to deliver better value for money.

But Labour have focused on the cuts they say will need to be made to vital services if council tax were frozen at 2008/9 levels as the Tories propose.

Labour leader Cllr Jo Lovelock said this morning: "Clearly we have to set a budget tonight, since council tax bills start going out at the weekend. The Tories talk about 0% council tax, but not about the £2.7m in cuts they would need to make, it's completely irresponsible."

On Tuesday night the Lib Dems suggested cutting agency workers, consultants and the council's sandwich budget to reduce the tax hike to 3.99%, but still made room for favoured projects including a fly-tipping hit squad and extra speed guns for streets plagued by boy racers. They also wanted to freeze councillors' allowances and shift some of the council's marketing budget to help promote neighbourhood action groups.

Their rivals accused them of mere "tinkering" and said that cutting £550,000 from the agency staff budget would leave vulnerable people without much-needed care.

The Lib Dem budget was voted down, as was Labour's, but Cllr Lovelock could propose a compromise between the two in a bid to break the deadlock.

Lib Dem leader Cllr Gareth Epps said: "We have behaved openly and with integrity. We tabled our amendment and sought to use it or any other ideas as the basis for negotiations. It is up to Labour and/or the Conservatives to table a proposal in writing. We shall examine any such proposal seriously."

This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 25 Feb 09

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