Leader warns of cuts ahead
THE leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf council has laid out the financial pressures the authority is facing as it aims to plug a funding gap of more than £40m over the next three years.
THE leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf council has laid out the financial pressures the authority is facing as it aims to plug a funding gap of more than £40m over the next three years.
Councillor Andrew Morgan said the authority will need to “cut its cloth accordingly” as it considers its medium-term financial plan which covers 2019 to 2022.
Councillors receive an update every year on the plan ahead of the setting of the annual budget.
And Cllr Morgan has used the opportunity to highlight the financial challenges the council is facing in what he says is an honest message about where the council is.
Cllr Morgan said: “The facts of the situation mean that the council will need to cut its cloth accordingly in response to continued financial pressures.
“Austerity has not gone away unfortunately and we know that into the foreseeable future we will have less money to meet ever increasing demands for services.
“Austerity will have been with us for close on a decade when we begin the formal process of setting next year’s budget in the autumn and, while we have tried to limit its impact locally, it has resulted in the council needing to make difficult decisions in the past and we will need to continue re-evaluating how we deliver our services, when demand and pressures have increased, and will continue to do so into the medium term.
“As part of service reviews we have looked at how we can operate more efficiently, although we recognise that moving forward the scope and flexibility to take this approach is diminishing – particularly when, regardless of future settlement levels, our costs continue to rise.
“We also need to have a watchful eye on external factors that will impact on our communities, for example the challenges that the introduction of universal credit will bring locally and the wider economic impact of Brexit.
“This is not to say that our approach to seeking out efficiency savings will alter but it is about acknowledging that protecting frontline services will become increasingly challenging if austerity continues or funding does not keep pace with the increasing financial pressures and demand on services that this latest update for members highlights.
“We have a good track record in delivering efficiencies and this is key in giving me confidence and the council wider assurance that we will continue to focus on making savings away from the frontline and, where we can, we will continue to invest wisely in areas which can deliver longer term base budget savings.”
Whilst setting the budget for the current financial year, it was revealed that the council needed to make savings of £9.8m.
Cllr Morgan said the council did this by becoming more efficient in how it purchased goods and services, changing how the council is structured, investing in technology, and improving how it works with others.
He also highlighted how the council was able to keep its council tax increase to 3.3%, which was the lowest increase in Wales.
“We are investing £180m as part of our capital programme for 2018-19 to 2020-21 to further improve infrastructure and facilities for residents,” he said.
“This includes regeneration projects, building better schools, improving the condition of roads and community assets such as parks and playgrounds, as well as further investment in leisure centres.
“This is an honest message about the challenges ahead but also one which should be taken constructively and positively – very much as a result of the strong financial management we have implemented during this period, which has delivered flexibility to manage our future financial challenges.
“What will be important, however, is to maintain this resilience into the future to meet the future financial challenges we may face.”