Minutes:
“This Council notes that many Council budgets are now at Breaking Point. Austerity has caused huge damage to communities up and down the UK, with devastating effects on key public services that protect the most defenceless in society – children at risk, disabled adults and vulnerable older people – and the services we all rely on, like clean streets, libraries and children’s centre.
This Council notes that the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss – stated on BBC Newsnight on 1 October 2018 that the government is ‘not making cuts to local authorities’.
This Council notes that our funding from Government has been cut by over 50% since 2010. This Council further notes that Prime Minister Theresa May has claimed that ‘austerity is over’ despite further cuts to council budgets appearing within the recent budget.
Given that these examples at the highest level of government show a complete lack of understanding of the effect of austerity to Councils’ like Welwyn Hatfield. This Council resolves to ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government setting out the funding pressures faced by our local Council and calling on the Government to truly end austerity in local government”.
It was then moved by Councillor D.Bell and seconded by Councillor T.Kingsbury that the wording of the third part of the Motion:-
“This Council notes that our funding from Government has been cut by over 50% since 2010. This Council further notes that Prime Minister Theresa May has claimed that ‘austerity is over’ despite further cuts to council budgets appearing within the recent budget.”
be amended to read as follows:-
“This Council notes that our funding from Government has been cut by over 50% since 2010 and resolves to ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government setting out the funding pressures faced by our Council. The letter should also urge that as far as is possible these challenges should be addressed in the forthcoming Spending Review.”
On being put to the meeting there voted:-
FOR the Amendment – 36
AGAINST the Amendment – 6
And the Amendment was declared CARRIED.
The Motion as amended was then put to the meeting:-
“This Council notes that many Council budgets are now at Breaking Point. Austerity has caused huge damage to communities up and down the UK, with devastating effects on key public services that protect the most defenceless in society – children at risk, disabled adults and vulnerable older people – and the services we all rely on, like clean streets, libraries and children’s centre.
This Council notes that the Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss – stated on BBC Newsnight on 1 October 2018 that the government is ‘not making cuts to local authorities’.
“This Council notes that our funding from Government has been cut by over 50% since 2010 and resolves to ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government setting out the funding pressures faced by our Council. The letter should also urge that as far as is possible these challenges should be addressed in the forthcoming Spending Review.”
Given that these examples at the highest level of government show a complete lack of understanding of the effect of austerity to Councils’ like Welwyn Hatfield. This Council resolves to ask the Leader of the Council to write to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government setting out the funding pressures faced by our local Council and calling on the Government to truly end austerity in local government”.
And was carried UNAMINOUSLY.