Star comment: Worrying times for authorities

While local authorities once enjoyed reasonably generous settlements from the Government and were at liberty to raise funds by making increases in council tax bills, now they are not.

The fiscal landscape has changed dramatically. In today's financial climate, councils now struggle to find the money for frontline services, let alone activities that fuel community cohesion, preserve our heritage and provide leisure opportunities for locals.

Shropshire Council leader Councillor Malcolm Pate has secured promises for an extra £8.5 million funding for local authority services. It sounds like a lot but it is the proverbial drop in the ocean. The council needs an extra £20 million if it is to avoid the closure of local museums and leisure centres. And that's before the authority factors in cuts to other services that are already planned.

The public sector remains in deep retreat. Six years after Labour left Government and George Osborne ushered in an age of austerity, there are still black holes to plug in the public finances. And it seems the only way to solve the nation's debt problem is to make further cuts.

And what ferocious cuts they will be. Facilities such as Shrewsbury's New Museum and the Quarry Swimming Pool are not the only ones at risk. Leisure centres and other publically-funded community facilities also have an uncertain future.

Local representatives including Councillor Pate and Shrewsbury & Atcham MP Daniel Kawczynski are among many who are making representations at the highest level. They are pushing for a greater funding settlement so that under-threat services can be kept away from the red line.

However, with other local authorities around the UK in similar impecunious circumstances, it is unrealistic to imagine they will find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

Instead, local councils will have to make tough decisions. The provision of an additional £8.5 million from the Secretary of State is welcome, though it is surely a gesture that is too little and too late.

One of the solutions will be for the public to take responsibility, or ownership, of council-funded services. That, however, will not solve the considerable problems that councils face. We are living through worrying times.

The Environment Agency says flood levels in the county are the highest we've seen this winter.

The barriers are going up in Ironbridge and they've been raised a level in Shrewsbury, where the river's expected to peak at just over four metres at the Welsh Bridge this lunchtime.

This photo was taken by Benny in Ironbridge this morning.

@bennymac3

The Environment Agency's Chris Bainger told us he expects the flood defences will stay up over the weekend too.