|
Heavy envelopes will be landing on your doormat within
the week. Council Tax is up by 2.37%. That's below the national average of 2.5%
and inflation. Its lower than the last few years. It is election year for
London as a whole but only £311 of the £1,328 paid by an average
Band D householder goes into Mayor Ken Livingstone's coffers.
The rest of it stays with Mayor Steve Bullock. Not
enough to cover increasing costs so some cuts are inevitable. Some services
such as Care and the Climate Change fund have been safeguarded. It would appear
that children and youth services have borne the brunt of the cuts. We heard
only last week at the Sydenham Assembly from the young themselves about the
closure of their clubs. This was in contrast with the feeling of the community
present that this was an essential area for funding in the fight against
juvenile crime.
We will have to see whether that influences how the
Sydenham assembly decide to spend their £10,000 locality fund.
Steve Bullock said:
“This has been one of the most difficult budgets
in recent years. In the coming financial year we will receive less funding from
Central Government and have been striving to maintain and protect key services
without passing on a large increase in Council Tax. Through good accounting and
close attention to detail, I think we have done this very
successfully."
“In line with my pledge to residents that Council
Tax would not rise above 2.5%, Councillors have agreed on a figure of 2.37%. We
have done this while managing to support and protect the most vulnerable in our
community. We have committed an additional £7million to adult social care
services."
Other Budget commitments, include:
- Sustainable Transport: Initiatives to reduce vehicle
emissions and promote and support cycling and walking as alternatives to car
use.
- Green Homes Pilot: Working with the London Development
Agency to improve domestic energy performance in Lewisham’s homes.
- National Year of Reading: To support literacy and
encourage reading especially among young people in the borough.
Do you think the council tax should be higher to
prevent cuts, do you think Steve has got it about right or is there another
alternative? Do comment in the here:
sdg |
