Average settlement for Shropshire would be £32m boost
If Shropshire Council received the average fair funding from the government it would be £32 million a year better off according to its leader.
On Thursday, the authority voted through a £593 million budget with £18 million worth of savings, alongside a 3.99 per cent council tax rise.
During the debate, councillor leader Peter Nutting called on the county's MPs to do more to lobby those in Westminster for fairer funding.
And councillor Nutting said the council would be millions better off if they received the average settlement.
He said: "There could be a big funding gap but I don’t think they would take away 20 to 30 million from us.
“We believe if we got the average on the fair funding formula we would get 32 million extra and that would help any financial problems.
“Adult social care is costing 8 to 10 million extra a year, and for some reason children’s services is going up, which could be down to County Lines.
“We have pushed the MPs to push in parliament and they have done but I would like to see them up the anti to help us get more money.
“I believe this council will be on a sound financial footing for years to come, and I am not going to go down a spend, spend, spend route.”
Cuts were made in the budget including in adult social care are £2.9 million, £1.5 million in children’s services, £3.9 million from public health and £10.8 million from workforce and transformation.
Lib Dem leader Roger Evans hit out at the budget, stating that austerity had not ended despite claims from the Tory government.
Labour leader Alan Moseley said it was crocodile tears from the Lib Dems, because austerity cuts were made by the previous coalition government.
He said the hardest people in the community are being hit by a string of cuts from the government.
He said: “This is a budget that points out the disasters of the past of this council.
“Don’t take in that this is reorganisation of the council to change things, this is a sad day in the life of this council and the sad decline of this council.”
Former leader of the council Malcolm Pate launched a stinging attack on the group leaders for not producing an alternative budget.
He added: “It is okay coming and moaning, but do your job properly and produce an alternative budget."
