£ 19m cuts

Revenue increase eases pressure

Councillors will be forced to make huge cuts – despite the promise of more cash.

South Lanarkshire Council will receive additional revenue of £9.4 million from the Scottish Government but savings of £19m are needed. Leader Eddie McAvoy said: “We will still have to make some tough decisions.”

Cash-strapped South Lanarkshire Council will have to make huge cuts – despite the promise of £9.4 million of additional revenue from the Scottish Government.

The local authority had been facing £22.4m of savings to balance the books in 2017/18 but this figure has now been reduced by £3m to £19m.

When the council’s budget strategy was approved by the executive committee in July 2016, the level of government grant was unknown.

And with Holyrood failing to agree their budget until Thursday, SLC were unable to finalise their proposals.

However, in a deal between Scottish Greens and the SNP, £160m of additional funds from the government has been found to protect local council services such as schools and social care.

Council leader Eddie McAvoy will now put forward a motion to drop 20 proposed cuts from the budget. The proposals will be tabled at a meeting of the council’s executive committee today.

Mr McAvoy is proposing £3m of the extra £9.4m will be used to offset cuts with the remainder going towards social care.

And 60 full-time equivalent posts out of the 282 originally earmarked for the axe look set to be saved.

Mr McAvoy said: “This has still been a tough settlement and balancing the budget for the year ahead has been more difficult than ever before.

“However, I am glad to be able to minimise the impact on some of our most important frontline services.”

East Kilbride Sports Council faced losing their annual grant of £7500.

They said this could spell the end for the group – due to celebrate their 50th anniversary this year.

However, the core funding to South Lanarkshire’s four area sports council – totalling £30,000 – is likely to be saved.

Among other cuts set to be scrapped are the GAMES out-ofschool service at Maxwellton and Greenburn primaries, the council’s mobile creche service and the care and repair service for older and disabled residents.

Proposals to introduce a shared janitorial service in 26 schools within a half-a-mile radius has also been removed from the list of possible cuts.

The SNP group in East Kilbride have welcomed the additional funding.

Education spokesperson Sheena Wardhaugh said: “The SNP Group on South Lanarkshire Council have given a wholehearted welcome to the extra funding for local councils.

“For SLC, this amounts to an extra £7.778m of revenue funding and £1.624m of capital funding totalling £9.402m extra funding coming to the council.

“When the extra income of £5.750m from council tax bands E and above is added, this will allow many of the proposed savings to be removed.

“The SNP Group is currently finalising its position on savings. It makes a pleasant change to be able to comment on improvements in funding and is a demonstration of the commitment of the Scottish Government to local services.”

Kirsten Robb will contest the East Kilbride East ward in the forthcoming elections for the Scottish Greens.

She said: “Greens stand firmly with East Kilbride’s communities and public sector workers affected by cuts and closures, and these new funds secured by Green MSPs mean we can start to repair the damage done by years of underfunding and lack of local flexibility.

“Over the years we’ve seen cuts to youth services and to support for people with additional needs in addition to the closure of local facilities like Calderwood Library and Allison Lea and St Leonards community halls.”

Meanwhile, East Kilbride Tory councillor and Central Scotland list MSP Graham Simpson said: “Any extra funding is welcome but it results from underspends and, therefore, can’t be taken as permanent. It was a smoke and mirrors budget right from the start.

“The so-called deal cobbled together by the SNP and Greens still results in huge cuts to council budgets and it will see more than 200 jobs go in South Lanarkshire.”