Council tax freeze is agreed for Angus

ANGUS council tax will be frozen this year after a £6.1 million dip into reserves to balance the books.

But the SNP administration move was accused of a “cowardly dereliction of duty” by opposition rivals at yesterday’s budget-setting meeting.

Conservative/Independent plans to raise council tax by 8% this year were rejected.

It keeps Band D Angus council tax at £1,316.68.

Ruling group finance spokesman Bill Duff said the decision to keep council tax frozen in exchange for £2.8m of Scottish Government funding was “not an easy decision”.

“Additional government funding is welcome, but it falls short of the likely council tax increase to balance our budget,” he said.

But he added: “If we reject the council tax freeze, we lose £2.8m this year, we lose it next year and we lose it every year after.”

A funding gap of £8.9% would equate to a council tax increase of 15.4%, he said.

For the first time in the authority’s 28-year history, there were four budgets on the table.

Those included officers’ recommendations – crucially containing £300,000 from car parking charges which officials wanted to bring back on April 1. But the administration, opposition and non-aligned budget proposals all dropped that from their spending plans.

Instead, each proposed a one-off payment to plug the gap.

Council leader Beth Whiteside revealed to the budget meeting the SNP group has no intention of reintroducing town centre car parking charges during this term.

The agreed administration budget will increase charges in a number of areas.

The annual cost of a garden waste bin permit jumps 25% to £50.

Charges across all council services will rise by 10%.

And school meals will be rising by 20p. Councillor Whiteside said: “It is tempting to try and avoid unwelcome cuts at all, bury our heads in the sand and hope that something turns up to ease the pressures in future.

“However, we are acutely aware that over-reliance on the use of reserves this year will leave the council in a vulnerable position and unprepared for the challenges that face us in years to come.”

SNP spending plans include an extra £100k of economic development cash to support getting Tay City Deal projects “over the line”.

“I would say a spend of that sum to land that value of projects is quite good leverage,” added Mr Duff.

But opposition group leader Derek Wann condemned the administration proposals.

“Raiding the reserves to save face for one year – why this one year one might ask – is a cowardly dereliction of duty,” said the Arbroath councillor.

“The SNP at Holyrood have held this council at gunpoint with a council tax freeze Cosla have said is not fully funded.

“Next year, unless the SNP government resource us properly, we will be looking at double-digit council tax increases, a further raid on the rainy-day funds, and all the cuts we didn’t want to make this year.

“This council will be balancing on the same tightrope, higher up, but with no safety net.”

A non-aligned budget was also defeated at the vote.

Proposing, Monifieth and Sidlaws councillor Heather Doran said: “The current framework of council funding is unsustainable.

“A council tax freeze and cuts now lead to larger could tax in the future, forcing people to pay more when services have been cut even more.”

Arbroath Independent Lois Speed said she could not support any of the proposals put forward.

She claimed Angus had been shortchanged with budget settlements below the Scottish average.

Ms Speed told SNP colleagues: “If you can’t stand up to your own government today you need to ask if you are standing up to the poverty, inequality and suffering that’s within our communities – and for our workforce who are simply on their knees.”

Beth Whiteside.