Knock-back for savings

South Lanarkshire councillors rejected a number of proposed cuts to key services when they approved the budget for the upcoming financial year.

Council officers presented elected members with a range of options totalling more than £18 million to plug the budget gap, with the potential options including a range of savings which were ultimately turned down.

The Labour and Liberal Democrat groups presented a proposal which invested nearly £2.7m into public services and removed some of the potential cuts which could have been used to balance the books.

Rejected options included ceasing Christmas switch-on events, which would have meant no council-provided festive events in Hamilton, East Kilbride, Rutherglen, Cambuslang, Lanark and Carluke.

The cross-party group’s motion also chose not to include a plan to concentrate Christmas trees and festive lighting in eight main geographical areas – Hamilton, East Kilbride, Rutherglen, Carluke, Blantyre, Cambuslang, Larkhall and Lanark.

Councillors also decided against a £100,000 revenue-raising proposal to introduce a £2 parking charge at Tinto Hill, Chatelherault, Calderglen Country Park and James Hamilton Heritage Park.

Further savings options not chosen for 2024-2025 included a reduction in grass cutting, from 18 times per year to 14 in high amenity areas and halving from 14 to seven in low-amenity areas to save £900,000.

Plans to reduce weedkilling from two applications to one per year, at a cost of £550,000, were also knocked back.

The administration budget rejected a proposal to remove ground staff support for local gala days, as well as the prospect of reducing litter picking and bin emptying across the area by 10 per cent to save £280,000.

Options to reduce both the primary and secondary area cover pools by 18 posts each as well as cutting eight posts from the extended support team were not considered as councillors were informed of a requirement to maintain teaching staff numbers which would otherwise cost the authority funding.