Council budget freezes council tax and protects services

The City Council is consulting on budget proposals for the year ahead. All councils are facing big grant cuts to tackle the huge deficit left by the last Labour Government. The city council will be redesigning many of its services and increasing some charges but the majority of spending reductions are in areas such as management, administration, supplies and services, transport and accommodation.

The impact on front line services will be kept to an absolute minimum possible but there will have to be some changes to contribute to the £45m of savings needed. However, unlike many other councils, Newcastle is not proposing closures of libraries, pools, leisure centres or childrens centres, and the city wishes to keep weekly bin collections and also the numbers of staff working to keep local neighbourhoods clean and tidy.

A final decision about the budget will be made in early March, and more information will be in a future Focus.