Tory maths are flawed

Conservative councillors are making a fuss (Reformer, March 28) because the recent council budget did not add in a further £1 million for roads for next year’s budget.

But let’s look at the whole picture. The council, with long-standing support from all parties, currently spends £24 million a year on road maintenance and carriageway resurfacing and has put an extra £1 million a year into this in recent years.

Consequently South Lanarkshire’s roads are significantly better than those in surrounding areas, although they have taken a hammering in the bad winter.

There is to be a review of the roads programme this year anyway.

Had the Conservatives had their way, there would have been £2.5 million less raised this coming year from the council tax.

That would hardly have helped improve the roads.

In addition the Conservatives would have slashed £1.5 million off the budget for teachers and support staff and £2 million off the funding for the excellent proposals for training 100 much-needed early years and social care staff.

The Conservatives would also have cancelled the modest proposals for tackling poverty by the long-overdue rise in the school clothing grant, the proposals for holiday lunch clubs and the inflation rise in support for the voluntary sector bodies that do so much in our communities.

Funding would be slashed with no concern for families in need.

I think that is perhaps an alternative budget that South Lanarkshire needed like a hole in the head. Robert Brown Liberal Democrat councillor for Rutherglen South