Town hall counts the £70m cost of coronavirus crisis
CHESHIRE East Council has revealed the impact of Covid-19 on its finances is a huge £70m – and renewed its call for the government to cover the full costs.
A report compiled for the cabinet spells out that the additional costs will be £10m more than the original £60m predicted.
So far central government funding has provided £19.5m towards this.
The warning comes as government figures show that as of June 30 there had been 1,355 confirmed coronavirus cases in Cheshire East and 486 registered deaths. Well over a quarter of these fatalities have been in Macclesfield.
The cabinet report also outlines measures to support the long-term recovery of the borough such as regeneration projects and ‘greener’ ways of working.
Councillor Amanda Stott, cabinet member for finance, said: “All councils are feeling the additional financial pressure of responding to the Covid19 pandemic – and Cheshire East is no exception.
“The council now faces additional cost pressures of £70m.
“We welcome the additional funding from government provided to date – but it’s estimated we need more than three times this amount.
“The pressures locally come from additional costs including social care, mental health, personal protection equipment, transport, distribution of business grants and ICT.
“In addition, it is costing us more to maintain essential services, such as waste collections while ensuring social distancing. We are also experiencing losses of income, such as from weddings and tourism.”
The response phase to the Covid crisis - with measures such as those described by Coun Stott - is thought likely to continue for some time.
The council is also planning for a potential second wave of the pandemic and localised outbreaks.
During the pandemic the council says it has distributed more than 2.5m items of personal protective equipment, given out more than £81m in business support grants and supported 3,100 residents with its shielding hub.
Around 3,600 residents have been matched with 1,300 volunteers via the People Helping People initiative.
Coun Stott added: “We do not yet know the lasting impact of the pandemic – but we do know that, even with anticipated government funding, we will experience unprecedented financial pressure for years to come.”
A report on the financial impact of the pandemic will be presented to cabinet in September and a meeting of full council in October.