Birmingham City Council effectively bankrupt

[dutchman]

Coventry next!

[rebbonk]

Whilst I'd not take a bet, I'm not so sure

[dutchman]

Birmingham council votes for £300m of cuts and 21pc council tax hike



Birmingham residents are being made to pay for Labour’s failure through a 21 per cent council tax hike, a government source has said.

The Labour-run council, which declared itself effectively bankrupt last year, voted on Tuesday night to make £300 million of cuts over the next two years in an attempt to balance the books.

At the same time, council tax will rise by 10 per cent in April and 10 per cent the year after – adding £350 to average bills.

Birmingham issued a Section 114 notice in September, meaning it had to halt all new spending, after facing equal pay claims of up to £760 million and an £80 million overspend on an under-fire IT system.

Independent commissioners were brought in by Michael Gove, the levelling up secretary, to help run the council, which owes almost £3 billion to lenders.

A source close to Mr Gove blamed Birmingham City Council’s “eye-watering levels of debt” and “wasteful spending” on “severe mismanagement” by the Labour Party

It is a “flashing red warning sign” for life under Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership, the source added.

Under the cost-cutting plans street lighting will be dimmed, bin collections will be made fortnightly, burial charges will be increased, and spending on highway maintenance will be slashed – putting drivers at risk of potholes.

There will also be a new charge for dealing with rat infestations in people’s homes and gardens, prompting one Tory councillor to complain: “Only rats will prosper in Birmingham.”

The Government source said it was a sign that Sir Keir would take Britain “back to square one”, with “more spending, more borrowing, more debt and higher taxes”.

“The Labour Party’s severe mismanagement of Birmingham City Council – the largest local authority in Europe - has bankrupted the council,” they said.

“There are eye-watering levels of debt and wasteful spending. Sadly local residents are being made to pay for Labour’s failure through higher taxes.

“This is a flashing red warning sign for what a Labour government would do to the UK. More spending, more borrowing, more debt and higher taxes. Taking us back to square one.”

Under the budget plans, fortnightly waste collections are set to be introduced in 2025-26, with other savings expected to come in almost immediately.

Dimming street lights is set to save almost £1 million a year, while cutting spending on highways maintenance could save up to £12 million, depending on the outcome of discussions over a private finance initiative.

Adult social care will be slashed by £23.7 million in the next financial year, while the children’s young people and families department will be forced to find £51.5 million in savings.

As part of the large cuts to adult social care, providers will not be given inflation-linked increases in many cases. Crisis payments for food, gas bills and white goods such as fridges and cookers will cease.

Staff will use fewer mobile phones and will go back to cheaper landlines, with people wanting to ring the council having to deal with more voice automation rather than actual human call handlers.

There will be a new charge of £24 for dealing with rats in gardens and houses. The bulky waste charge will be increased from £35 to £45, while garden waste subscription charges will increase from £50 to £60 a year. Fees for sport and leisure facilities will increase by 5 per cent.

Car parking charges will be introduced in parks and the number of rangers will be cut. More than 30 parks maintenance staff will be sacked and the use of herbicides will be phased out.

Less money is set to be spent on removing graffiti, with offensive cases tackled first, and a number of street cleaners will be cut.

All grants for cultural projects will be cancelled from 2025 and the budget to promote Birmingham as a tourist destination will be cut. The council will also aim to make more money by hosting more weddings at its registry offices.

The two 10 per cent council tax increases – which add to up to 21 per cent over two years – will add around £350 to a typical Band D home and £700 on the most expensive Band H properties.

A protest gathered outside the building where the councillors were debating the budget on Monday evening, with local media reporting that hundreds of people had shown up to voice their concerns.

In an attack on the Labour Group, Morriam Jan, a Lib Dem councillor, asked whether it was worth hosting a “two-week party” for the Commonwealth Games in 2022.

She claimed Labour was warned not to go ahead with the event, adding: “Was the job bankrupting the city? Was that two-week party worth the millions of pounds worth of assets we will need to sell? Or the jobs that will be lost? Or the services that will be stopped?”

The cost of the 2022 games was estimated at £778 million, of which the council and its partners paid £184 million.

[rebbonk]

Yet the ar$eholes that created the problem are still holding office!

The first rule of turnaround strategy is that you remove those responsible for the present mess! They created it, they aren't going to be able to fix it.

[dutchman]

Yet the ar$eholes that created the problem are still holding office!

And could be running the whole country soon!